The Grievers Garden

It was a beautiful thing to speak about grief and love with so many incredible women, surrounded by towering trees, as the sunlight peeked through the leaves. We laughed, we cried, we exchanged stories, even smelt some trees…. And we opened up the conversation on grief ever wider! Thank you for having me! It was truly a core memory moment. And thank you to all those who shared vulnerable and let your tears touch the ground.
Photo shout out to the amazing .photography

What a time we had ! Bringing the subject of grief so openly to this place was a real privilege. I’m never forgot seeing circles of women hold space for each others loss and pain. And to debunk some myths out loud… and smelling a tree 😭 IYKYK.

I was equally poured into throughout the weekend from being with friends, new friends and seeing some old ones! I can’t wait to share more photos as they come! .esme.art

I’ve been quiet around here with not much of my own content or words. And it’s not because I am not deeply passionate about our grievers garden community but because I got a job I thought I could only dream of in this season of life.
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The hospice I have volunteer with for over three years is now my place of employment as the new program lead of grief services. 😭😭🥰🥰
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As you can imagine this is a hugely beautiful season to get to walk into. I made this space because I wasn’t willing to wait to be “qualified enough” on paper to get to support those grieving. So to it both professionally and here is a dream! So thanks for being here. That’s my little update for you lovely blooms.

Grieving is a courageous act.

Loss changes us. It’s madness that somewhere along the line of history, we started to be conditioned that you could “move on” from the loss of a person you love. Not only do we not move on, our grief; this afterlife love, is knitted into our DNA. We move through grief, with our person sewn into our soul.
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So today, I am living in the duality of gratefulness for my dad and the sadness that he is not here to give him a bag of maltesers for Father’s Day. Thinking of you all

Dad. 5 years without our centre.
You saw my first breath.
And I saw your last.
I have been trying to catch my breath ever since. I don’t know that I ever will.
This missing is deep in these creaky bones,
Sewn into the fabric of my being.
Never to be forgotten. Never to move on from.
While I feel like 500 years has passed, still it also seems like just 5 seconds.
The joy of having you as my Dad will sit in the nooks of my soul. And the pain of missing you in all that’s to come sits in the crannies of my soul too.
Love you always.

Rhubarb. It’s not just rhubarb. It’s a gift of love and connection birthed from great love. Working with those who have lost their loved ones, yes is hard, painful and sad - but there it is always overflowing with the most sacred of LOVE.

Being a foster momma was the hardest yet one of the most honouring roles I’ve played in life. Getting to be their respite carer is a great privilege. The layers of grief were different than I had bore witness to in other grief work. It has continued to teach me that we too often rely on hardship to build resiliency- and we quickly assume “kids can be so resilient”.

Mhmmm… let’s stop saying and assuming this. While our grief has many of those uninvited lessons, we must also find ways to find resiliency in the healthy parts of life.

Resiliency can and should also be built in joy, in rest, in creativity and most importantly perhaps, in safety. To create spaces for children (and adults) to be what they need to be, dependent on the life journey they are on.

The ability to regulate our emotions is a huge sign of healthy resiliency, and that cannot be built on just forcing yourself to “get on with it” when bad things happen to you. It’s the ability to move through the complex and non-linear range of emotions. One of the things I am so proud of my daughter-in-love finding when she lived in our home.

I myself, and I hope you will too, ponder on the ways in which we can build healthy resiliency ❤️

Feast of food, friends and feelings with .mags and ! We can’t wait to share out favourite comfort foods, guided and free conversation, and bringing old friends and maybe making new friends! Can’t wait to see you there! FREE, and any donations with be going To . Link into bio to save seat- limited spaces. DM for more deets

NEW GATHERING!!! We are hosting a delicious gathering of food, feelings and friends! was inspired to host a potluck together - how could I say no to food, feelings and friends???! FREE and if you are able bring your favourite comfort food, let’s talk about our feelings WITH new and old friends (if you want too)
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This event is free- just register on Eventbrite as we have limited space (hosted at the beautiful amenity space at The Hat Five Corners downtown). We will be hosting some guided conversation, good food and stories from anyone that would love to share! Click the link in bio to register or head to our website www.thegrieversgarden.com and tag your friends and fam

To all the grievers this Mother’s Day. Whatever shape your grief is taking on this day, be kind to yourself, and give self compassion, and feel what you need to feel and let go of what you need to let go of. Your grief matters.

I think our loved ones were dancing last night for us. 🩷🩵💚🌌

This week concluded another four week grief support group at the hospice. And what a brave bunch of souls I was so privileged to sit amongst. It’s is always bittersweet to end each group - bitter in that I hold these people dearly now, and wish we could meet every week ❤️ and sweet because I know the power of connecting in our grief and something special always happens in that space and well, I’m so honoured to be a part of it.
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While it will always be the most painful of things to watch other humans in pain- grief fills the room with so much love too.
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Not only do I bear witness to their grief… but I commit to never forget to bear witness to all their love too.

Events coming up with The Grievers Garden - all info available at our website www.thegrieversgarden or click the link in bio. We are excited to announce our surprise event for June 4th next week 🌸

And I mean, NEVER 🤣🤣

If you know you know, right? 🍋🍋

I am about it to lead another 4 week grief support group on Tuesday, be part of a “mothers loss” day workshop on Sunday and volunteer in an 8 week adult grief support group. +
Sometimes i feel like maybe im a bit of a weirdo for loving being in these spaces. But ultimately where i see and hear grief, i find great love. Unmasked and completely exposed. And though it’s always hard to hear someone’s pain, there is a beauty I see in the human rawness of love after loss.
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I am feeling incredibly lucky to have the honour to be part of walking alongside these grieving ones in this season, and hold my father even tighter (if that’s possible), that this work would not be where I would be without learning so much through him and losing him.
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This work both saddens me to see people in such pain, yet brings me so much joy to get to be in the thick of vulnerability and normalizing conversation and support for others. The world gets brighter and lighter when we find each other in the midst of the darkest journeys.

Grief is normal. And that’s not to minimize it the pain, the hurt, the sadness and the whole caboodle that comes with grieving.
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It is to say grief is normal and we should talk about it without the taboos that society has put around it. We need to know the ways in which people grieve and the unique-ness to each of us, will help others not feel like they are losing their mind.
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One of the primary reasons I share things on this account is it NORMALIZE the conversation around grief. And I hope it helps.

Grief deserves curiosity not judgement.
Have you watched Ted lasso? One of my favourite scenes is when he shares about the importance of curiosity over judgement and it hit my heartstrings for our grief journeys. When we get curious about grief, about ourselves, the ways we grieve, we can learn so much more empathy, grace and compassion for ourselves and others.
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This is the second tee of some new designs I’ve been working on. I’m hoping to move to more sustainable options! Stay tuned!

🤠This ain’t Texas… but for a limited time we are gonna go a lil bit country! If Beyoncé can do it, so can we!
👚Grab yourself a limited edition cropped tee and 5% goes to Pilgrims Hospice (an organization I volunteer and work for here in Edmonton).
❤️Sizing is limited due to the high demand of the cropped tee, but hopefully more will come available.
🤠 Click link in bio or go to www.thegrieversgarden.com to purchase!
beyonce

🧘‍♀️WHAT? Relaxing Soundbath with Isabel Fry
🗓️ WHEN? Thursday 25th April 2024
⏰TIME? 7 - 8.15pm
📍WHERE?
🙋🏽‍♀️WHOS INVITED? Everyone
💰HOW MUCH? $25
🧦WHAT SHOULD I WEAR? Come comfy!

No April fools here… I know for many of us, we hoped some joker would pop out after the loss and it was all just a nightmare, a cruel joke or an April fools. Instead we are left living with the reality, that we have lost something dear to us. I’m thinking of you all today. And I wish for all of us, this grief was just an April fools.

The goal isn’t to cure grief but to care for it.

Nearly 7 years after becoming a single parent, I have grieved all kinds of hopes, dreams and expectations I had for me and my little clan. I have panicked, and worried that we would never get to travel or enjoy life because I’d be constantly trying to just provide the bare basics. The privilege is not lost on me that we have had the opportunity to travel and not everyone is able, and so I cherish it when we can.
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I really grounded myself into this 2024 as a year of minimizing burdens where we could and were able, to maximize enjoyment. It’s been a long 7 years of deep pain that many days felt without escape, and so I hold this close.
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This happy face is not the result of being “healed from grief”. I will never be fixed from the loss of so many things, they are a part of my story. But I have dug my way to space where I can create space for joy to exist. That’s what’s on my face. The acceptance and peace that I can live in both grief and joy. And I’m never in competition within my soul to have to be either/or. -exist

This is gonna be a GOOD ONE! Come for a soothing and comforting soundbath with for our next Grievers Circle. I am really honoured to have Isabel host this space for the grievers.
🧘‍♀️WHEN: THURSDAY APRIL 25th 2024
🌸WHERE: Iava wellness
⏳TIME: 7-8.15pm
💁🏼‍♀️WITH: Isabel Fry
This is a ticketed event to cover costs - $25 a ticket and you can go to link on bio to grab those. Only 10 spaces available!! If finances are a barrier please reach out.
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We are skipping march in honour of spring break. Please find rest and enjoyment this month!

Have you ever given yourself permission fully grieve?
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My life journey has been full of a lot of grief. Walking through my own healing journey and unfolding the things I have witnessed and the losses I have experienced, I never realized the weight I was carrying.
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The “grief recovery method” that I walked through a few years back really gave me a chance to acknowledge alot of loss. And also, a chance to feel it, see it and find healing in it and ways to move forward. My dad’s death obliterated me. And it forced me to grieve fully. I couldn’t NOT grieve fully. It was and is a full body, mind and soul experience. And in turn I have learned in the last four years how much I didn’t let myself fully grieve all the losses that came before.
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I wish it hadn’t taken this loss to bring me here. But these “uninvited lessons” (as I call them) are lessons nonetheless that I will cling to as I commit to moving forward. Both with grief AND joy.

We will never know, will we? And what a grief that is.
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I have learned that grief does not merely linger over the past loss, but sits at the table of the present, and weaves itself to the future. And I don’t mean that in some dark and twisty way, I mean in the way that our love for the ones we lost, doesn’t stop. So we remember. We grieve. We are grateful. We reflect. We wonder.
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My dad died 3 months before he turned 63. I wonder what he would look like, be like, smell like, dress like, eat like and laugh like at 70, at 80, at 90. We have been robbed of such a joy. And that grief is a hard pill to swallow no matter how much time has passed.

I am deeply moved and thrilled to announce that I will be presenting at this year (July 5-7th, 2024) as an honorary presenter bringing a message on “Grief is love”.
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I am thankful for the team at Wild Roses for holding space for a conversation around grief and making room for the grievers. Not only am I excited to come as a presenter but to have the privilege of attending. I know this time will be beautifully healing and impactful. I. Cannot. Wait. We cannot cure grief, but we can care for it… together 🧡
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Let me know if you need any help with info or purchasing tickets and I can lead you in the right direction. And as ever, I tip my hat to my dad, for being the greatest grief and the greatest lesson of love and loss. The un-invited legacy I will forever be grateful for.

This coming Thursday Feb 29th 2024; we are gathering for are monthly grievers circle at with guest host and I simply cannot wait! The grieves circle is a FREE community support group where every month we do something different in holding space for our grief. Grief comes in all shapes and sizes and we do not judge, compare or try to fix. We cannot cure grief, but we can care for it- and collective care matters. LJ is a beautiful soul who comes with tender vulnerability, a sense of humour and a high value on support and championing others. She has lived experience with loss and grief and shares with honesty and love. Come out and invite your friends. This will be a sweet gathering.

Death taught me you can never say “I love you” enough to the people in your life. I didn’t feel regret that I didn’t tell my dad I loved him, because I did, and I knew he knew I loved him. He was surrounded by a lot of love in life and in his final moments. He died with those words being said over and over. +
But even without that regret, and the saying all the “I love you’s” you possibly can, it never will feel like you said it enough. So I tell my loved ones A LOT that I love them. Not because I fear they won’t know it, or I won’t say it enough- but because it’s an absolute pleasure to love them and I want to enjoy every moment I get to do it.
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It’s not a throw away comment. It’s not a space filler. It’s not an obligation. When I say I love you. I mean it. Because I know what it feels like to not have the chance to say it again.
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Love you 😘