Reflections

Let the Guilt Go I wrote this reflection in May of 2022, and I feel it bears repeating and repeating… Last week as I was driving home from a support group meeting at Stephy’s Place when one of my favorite songs came on the radio, Billy Joel’s, Say Goodbye to Hollywood. The lyrics have always…

It’s not what we do once in while that shapes our lives. It’s what we do consistently.” Tony Robbins Dear Stephy’s Place Family, I wanted to take a moment this month to reflect on the heartbeat of our support groups: consistency. Before I do so, I want to applaud and thank all you who make…

Take Good Care “The voice of grief is rather convincing… This voice in your head is the first thing you hear in the morning and the last thing you hear at night. It drives with you to work. It stays with you at lunch. Its message is so consistent that, because of its repetitive power,…

The Quest I was very active in theater while in college, and I had the awesome opportunity to play the role of Sancho Panza in the musical, Man of La Mancha. It was a blast. I got to follow a crazed knight on his glorious quest, no matter how hopeless, no matter how far. Our…

Surviving The Big Days The Holidays, Anniversaries, and Birthdays By Kevin J. Keelen It’s pretty much universal knowledge that the holiday season can magnify our feelings of loss and sorrow. These future dates can be so all-consuming that they can emotionally destroy each day leading up to them. And so, I would like to offer…

OMIT THE COMMIT My millennium started with my sister’s suicide in August of 2000, which was followed by my nephew’s suicide in August 2004. Although I’ll never get used to the word suicide, in fact I hate the word, we don’t have any other word to describe this way of dying. And it is the…

Nature Nurtures The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely, or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty…

Fear Itself “No one ever told me that grief felt so much like fear.” C. S. Lewis, A Grief Observed How can someone be here and then not? Even after all my losses, I still can’t wrap my head around it. How can someone be here and then not? When this becomes a reality it…

10 YEARS IN THE MAKING-THE STORY OF STEPHY’S PLACE Stephy’s Place Center for Grief and Loss opened our doors in September 2015 hosting one support group. Now ten years later, we have grown to have over 50 separate peer support groups for loss of a spouse, loss of a child, loss of a parent, loss…

Take Good Care Self-Care isn’t a new buzzword, nor a new age idea, it’s essential and necessary for healing and living. We constantly talk about self-care in our support groups, and every counselor, therapist, and author emphasize its crucial importance. Many of us grew up learning that if you focused at all on yourself, you…