Yost & Webb Funeral Home Fresno

Finding joy while experiencing grief may seem impossible. What we don’t realize is that finding joy during grief is both possible and necessary.

Here are some ways to try:

▪️ Identify what makes you feel good. Create a list of things that bring you joy. Maybe it’s a long walk, meditation, or even a dance party. Do these things regularly.
▪️ Make space for joy. Set aside time each day to intentionally allow yourself to feel joy.
▪️ Hold on to the memories. Let yourself reflect on memories that you hold close and wouldn’t want to change.
▪️ Find new ways to be happy. Start a new hobby, try something brand new to you, or volunteer for a charity.
▪️ Celebrate life. It’s okay to celebrate the life of a loved one with friends and family. Don’t hold back from smiling and laughing together as you remember them.
▪️ Live life fully. Live your life in a way that you can look back without having many regrets.

Trying to dull the negative emotions that come with grief can also dull the positive ones. Freeing yourself from the burden of focusing on tough feelings can help with finding joy during times of grief. With the help of some intentional mental exercises and awareness, you can set yourself up to find joy, even amid grief.

A father is someone you look up to, no matter how tall you grow. Happy Father’s Day. 🤍

The things we cherish in life become ingrained within out very being and shape who we are.

Going outside in the fresh summer air is a wonderful way to maintain an active lifestyle. Going outside encourages light exercise and promotes socializing, which are both important parts of a healthy senior lifestyle.

Here are 5 outdoor activities to do in the summer that can promote fitness and get you moving. ☀️

1. Gardening: Gardening is a great outdoor activity for seniors to get some light exercise in.
2. Walking: Walking helps maintain cardio in a senior’s lifestyle.
3. Fruit Picking: Fruit picking is a great way to get out and get some fresh air while partaking in mild exercise.
4. Outdoor Music: Outdoor music is a great opportunity to get up and dance while enjoying the sounds and scenery.
5. Bird Watching: Bird watching is a great activity for seniors to explore nature and can also be very soothing and therapeutic.

Go outside and enjoy the summer weather today!

Making sure you are drinking enough water each day is crucial for many reasons. It helps to regulate body temperature, keeps joints lubricated, prevents infections, delivers nutrients to cells, and keeps organs functioning properly. Pour yourself a glass of water! 💧

For people who have lost their father, Father’s Day without Dad can be painful. Reminders in advertisements and stores can trigger feelings of loss. On such a heavy day, it’s important to be gentle with yourself and respect your need to grieve. Choosing how to honor parents who have passed is a personal and emotional decision.

Here are 6 ideas on how you can remember and celebrate your dad on Father’s Day. We hope this helps inspire you as you make your plans.

1. Write a letter to your father
2. Do something that your father enjoyed doing
3. Spend time with a friend who may also be grieving
4. Create new traditions to remember your dad
5. Make an online tribute on social media
6. Be kind to yourself and allow yourself the time and space you need to process your feelings

However you choose to honor your father and your grief, know that it’s perfectly acceptable to do what’s best for you.

Finding a final resting place to honor and remember your loved one is an important decision. As you consider burial options for yourself or a loved one, choosing what’s right for you and your family comes with a variety of options.

Burial Options: choices for burial options can vary greatly, depending on your preference and budget. As you consider the choices, think about what fit best for you and your family. Some options to consider are:
▪️ Single burial space
▪️ Double-depth space
▪️ Family lot
▪️ Mausoleum (public or private)

Cemetery Property: before purchasing cemetery property, research your area cemeteries to determine which options best fit your needs. Each kind of cemetery has its own benefits and drawbacks, so take the time to see which one is right for you or your loved one. Options may include:
▪️ Private cemetery
▪️ Public cemetery
▪️ National or state cemetery
▪️ Natural or green cemetery

Caskets Options: caskets come in many different materials and a variety of price points. The selection of a casket is solely up to you and your family. No matter what type of casket you chose, you can personalize the casket by adding photos or special items. Casket options may include:
▪️ Modern caskets
▪️ Metal caskets
▪️ Half-couch or Full-couch caskets
▪️ H**p or Wicker casket

To learn more about all of your options, visit our website and talk to one of our trusted funeral professionals. We can help you understand all of your options and make decisions that work the best for you and your family.

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Life brings both ups and downs. Count your blessings. Be grateful for everything. Continue to look toward the bright side. ☀️

A positive mindset is an important factor for increasing your confidence. But the truth is, that isn’t always enough. If you want deep-rooted self-confidence, the type that sticks around when things feel like they are falling apart, you may need to do a little bit more.

Here are 5 ways you can start to build up the deep-rooted self-confidence you want to have in yourself:

▪️ Surround yourself with confident people.
▪️ Choose the people you engage with carefully. Be mindful of who you allow into your circle.
▪️ Set boundaries for yourself and stay strong within those boundaries.
▪️ Take action when you are scared. Don’t back down, no matter how difficult it may seem.
▪️ Allow yourself to invest in support if/when you need it.

Remember, confidence is the most beautiful thing you can possess. ✨

Home of the free, because of the brave. Happy Memorial Day. ❤️💙

In order for a funeral service to be a healing and meaningful experience, there are certain tried and true elements you should consider incorporating. If you are planning a funeral, whether because someone you love has died or you are making advanced funeral plans, give some thoughtful consideration to how you can implement these 7 healing and meaningful elements.

1. Music - music sets the tone of a funeral and brings emotions to the forefront.
2. Readings - readings are another way to not only invite mourners to express their emotions, but readings bring the unique spirit of the one who has died to life.
3. Viewing or Visitation - the viewing or visitation is a time for family, friends, coworkers, and neighbors to gather and express support and sympathy.
4. Eulogy- the eulogy or remembrance may be the single most important aspect of a funeral service. It is the time to acknowledge and affirm the significance of the life lived.
5. Symbols - symbols, or symbolic acts, offer a focus point for the bereaved as well as a sense of comfort. Some examples include: a cross (or another appropriate religious symbol), flowers, and candles.
6. Gathering - the gathering is an opportunity for friends and family to come together after the funeral service to share stories and to support one another.
7. Action - by inviting others into action at the funeral service, you engage mourners and invite them to put their grief into motion.

Using these elements as a guide for creating a funeral service will help you prepare a meaningful and healing experience. Those who come to mourn and celebrate the life of a loved one lost will leave feeling like they have honored a life lived and have taken the first healthy step on their grief journey.

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Always loved. Never forgotten. Forever missed. 🤍

Physical activity has a huge potential to enhance our well-being. Even a short burst of 10 minutes of brisk walking increases our mental alertness, energy, and positive mood.

Grief can be different every time, because each love we feel is also different. It might be a constant dull ache, or it might lead you to break down in tears when you least expect it. You might think about it daily, or you might not think about it for months, only to find yourself slammed as if the loss happened just that day. It might bring you a fond smile of melancholy remembrance, or it might make you want to curl up in a corner of the couch with a tub of ice cream. Grief might make you want to scream into the void, or it might pass in silent sadness. It can make you want to retreat from everyone and everything or run and embrace them with all the force you can muster.

When grief hits you, if at all possible, let it be exactly what it wants to be. Natural grief is more likely to be cathartic and healing and denying it may cause more harm than good. No one chooses to grieve. Grief is an involuntary emotional response to the loss of someone you love. Denying it, ignoring it, and burying it doesn’t make it go away. Attempting to do so may just cause is to fester and eventually disrupt your overall emotional wellbeing. There is nothing strong about stuffing it all down and pretending nothing is wrong. What IS strong is continuing on even as you grieve, while allowing that grief the space and time it needs.

Taking a couple of minutes each day to appreciate the little things can go a long way in helping to boost our overall mood. ✨

A mom loves you first, and then forever. Happy Mother’s Day 🌺

Grief has the power to nourish our souls, allowing us to grow. ✨

Mother’s Day can feel vacant after your mom, grandma, or another mom figure in your life passes. While many are making arrangements to go through the day spending time with their mothers, some are unable to do that. It can be hard to enjoy the day when the woman who raised and shaped you into who you are today is no longer present. Regardless of how long it’s been since you lost her, it’s not uncommon to awaken on Mother’s Day feeling the initial loss all over again. Especially for those whose grief is new.

Here are some different ways you can still honor her on Mother’s Day:

1. Bring flowers or a plant to her cemetery gravesite
2. Light a candle in honor of her
3. Spend time with your grandmother or other family members
4. Explore old photographs and memories
5. Write her a letter
6. Volunteer your time at a location that was important to her
7. Cook one of her favorite recipes

Allow this Mother’s Day to move you to plan something unique to honor the memory of the one who will consistently stay in your heart. ❤️

Understanding how to navigate through the grief you are experiencing can be hard. What’s important to remember is that grief and loss are both a part of our human experiences and it’s natural for these feelings to impact our lives in some way.

We all move through grief and loss differently, but here are 5 ideas to help yourself or a loved on navigate through the process:

▪️ Acknowledge the loss, do not avoid it.
▪️ Stay in contact. Whether it’s physical and emotional support that is needed, sometimes, even the mere presence of someone close to you can provide comfort.
▪️ Allow space. Grief can be overwhelming, and sometimes moments of quiet reflection can be healing.
▪️ Talk about the loss. Reminisce about favorite memories or moments that made you laugh.
▪️ Listen. Sometimes, the most important thing is to just be a good listener. Allow yourself or your loved one to express their feelings, thoughts, and memories without interruption.

Remember, the grieving process is a deeply personal experience. By acknowledging the impact of grief, we can navigate this emotional journey with resilience and strength.

May the warmth of the sun and the fresh breeze of May greet you with a warm hello.

It can be difficult to know how to console a friend or relative who is grieving the loss of a loved one. If it seems that nothing you can do or say helps, don’t give up. You can’t take the pain away, but your presence is more important than it may seem. Accept that you can’t fix the situation or make your friend or relative better. Instead, just be present and offer hope and a positive outlook toward the future. Remember to be flexible and open to a person’s way of grieving. Recognize that grief is a gradual process for all. 🤍

As we fully make the transition from winter into spring, it’s a great time to make sure we are on track with all of our end-of-life arrangements. That means dusting off our plans and shedding a bit of sunlight on what the future might hold.

Of course, few of us can know when or where the last stop on our journey of life will arrive, but doing all we can to prepare will help our loved ones when they find themselves trying to navigate through that difficult time.

Take these ideas as a simple starting point to your pre-planning preparations:

1. Polish up your will: the best way to avoid any disputes is to ensure your wishes are known by having everything stated clearly and effectively in your will.

2. Inspect and go over your insurance policy: providing a financial cushion can ease some of the difficulty around death.

3. Clear up any clutter you have lying around: make sure your family is aware of where everything is and what they will need. You can make a folder with a clear list of everything included and make sure at least one person knows where to find it.

4. Clarify your funeral plans: avoid disagreements and ease stress by making your funeral plans clear to friends and family.

5. Share the load of planning: no one should be doing all of this sorting, decluttering and planning alone. Use this time to talk openly with your loved ones to make your plans and wishes clear while reassuring them that it is something you want to talk about.

Visit our website to see how we can help you with any of your pre-planning questions.

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Allowing yourself to move on means you’ve accepted your loss, but that does not mean that you have forgotten. You can move on with your life and still keep the memory of someone or something you lost as an important part of you. In fact, as we move through life, these memories can become more and more integral to who we are as people.

So don’t be afraid to take that step forward, no matter how small of a step it may be. The speed or size of the step is not what matters, it's the direction that has the most value.

Flowers are medicine for the soul. 💐

Reflect on the things you’re grateful for and acknowledge the beauty and growth around you.

Gratitude helps people focus on the positive aspects of their life. Gratitude can help build and maintain relationships with others, resulting in hope and overall satisfaction with life. 🤍

In a life that has been stained with grief, passing time may feel like short sprints trying to get your life back on track, followed by long periods of sluggishness, an inability to move, or even feeling like you are going backwards instead of forward.

The changing seasons of grief never stop cycling. Early grief is an all-consuming heaviness; a weight so substantial your entire body hurts and a simple task may feel impossible.

And even when you may feel like you are moving forward, grief is sneaky. You don’t see the drops coming, and then suddenly it’s as if you are plunging downward. It’s confusing, it’s frustrating, and it’s angering. And sometimes - there’s no explanation as to why you’re experiencing the drop.

Just remember, you ARE moving forward. You ARE making progress. And if it’s taking longer than you thought it would, that’s okay! You are not alone.

There are some who bring a light so great to the world that even after they are gone the light remains. 🪽

Transformation is a process, and as life happens there are many ups and downs. It is a journey of discovery. ✨

With years of experience, you and your loved ones can rely on us to provide professional support and guidance during your time of need. 🤍

Visit our website to see the many ways we can serve you.

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By making small adjustments to your habits and mindset you can break down any resistance to change and welcome the uncertainty that comes with it.

Here are 6 examples of ways to embrace change to help you leave your comfort zone.

1. Journal: write it all out to better understand your feelings.

2. Accept Your Fears: focus on what IS; not what WAS. You can fight off any doubts and fears with a positive mindset.

3. Lean into Your Community: as individuals, we need to understand that life isn’t a solo journey. Allowing yourself to lean into your community of family, friends, and mentors can provide the moral support you need to believe in yourself.

4. Embrace Creative Thinking: life rarely goes how you imagined. Creativity in your thinking promotes greater resilience by teaching you to be flexible and resourceful.

5. Share with Others: although your situation may be unique, you are not alone in dealing with big life changes. Many people deal with the same thing. Sharing your experience with your circle and listening to the experiences of others can help you feel less alone.

6. Consult with a Mental Health Professional: if the fear of change becomes too loud to hear yourself think, it may be your signal to seek help from a mental health professional. A therapist can create a safe space to analyze your distress and resistance to change.