Ending of Another Kind
By Marcia Thornton Jones
"Sorrow is heavy, hard work. It stalls all your systems in order to force you toward a very, very painful task: coping with loss…loss is hard for us, and healing from it takes a lot of energy. A big loss may require so much energy that our essential selves shut down every possible function.”
(pages 182-183: FINDING YOUR NORTH STAR by Martha Beck)
There are many types of endings. The end of a story, end of summer, end of an era. The end of childhood, end of innocence, end of a relationship. The end of a life.
Some endings are harder than others. The really tough endings involve losses that leave empty spaces in our lives and hearts. Those endings result in profound and often paralyzing grief.
CoCo-Mo was a member of my family. She was my companion, friend, sidekick, and muse for more than 15 years. CoCo was the inspiration for the cat characters of “Cocomo” in the Ghostville Elementary series, “Mo” in the Keyholder series, and “Echo” in my midgrade novel WOODFORD BRAVE.
Two nights ago, as I held her, CoCo ’s life ended.
So my question is: how do you summon creative energy to write through paralyzing grief?
I'm so sorry for your loss, Marcia. I don't know how you summon the energy to write, but I do know you have to let yourself feel your feelings before you can begin to heal. Much love coming at you.......
ReplyDeleteThanks, Laurie. I go between numbness and too much feeling. The journal I tried to keep has gone silent because there are too many memories.
DeleteI'm so sorry to hear of your loss. We've heard so many stories of Coco over the years and like you said, she's part of your published stories too. Imagine her in Cat Heaven and know she's in good hands. Healing takes time, but your memories are forever. Writing will come when you're ready.
ReplyDeleteI feel guilty when I don't write, but writing ... and everything else seems to require so much energy.
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry that CoCo-Mo is gone, Marcia. She sounds like the best kind of companion. It's okay not to write at this moment. I came across this article recently that talks about the concept; I hope it's useful: http://sevenscribes.com/writing-begins-with-forgiveness-why-one-of-the-most-common-pieces-of-writing-advice-is-wrong/
ReplyDeleteThat is an excellent article, Tamera. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome. Glad you enjoyed it, Marcia. Take care.
ReplyDeleteYour summoning the energy to write this post gave all of who know that kind of grief a welcome gift. Thank you for sharing this,
ReplyDeleteThanks for that perspective. I'd be interested to know how others write through grief. I've noticed my creative energy has fizzled. Even my journaling has completely changed.
DeleteThinking about you
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteI'm sorry for your loss, too. I know how tough this is. CoCo was lucky to have you.
ReplyDeleteThank you. Loss is tough, and grief is not fun. But if we never felt the grief over a great loss, we would never have known how lucky we were to have that person, place, or thing in the first place!
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