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5 Rituals That Helped Me Grieve a Parent’s Terminal Illness
Courtesy of Chelsea Avila and Photo Illustration: Siobhan GallagherCourtesy of Chelsea Avila and Photo Illustration: Siobhan Gallagher Even up until the last day of my father’s life, I still looked at him as invincible. This was a man who had been diagnosed with stage three pancreatic cancer right at the start of his golden years. Yet, even with an inoperable tumor, radiation, and rounds of chemotherapy, he was still here — fighting, thriving, loving, deteriorating, and yet always looking for a reason to stand up and keep going, even two years later. I was witness to some of his best moments and some of the hardest any child can experience.…
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How a Tattoo Helped Me Grieve My Divorce, My Friend’s Death
I have a lot of tattoos — bats, skulls, ghosts, and hearts, to name a few — but one is particularly personal. It’s lyrics from a song called “Beautiful” wrapped around my wrist: “Can I have you? Can I be a part of you? Can I help you? Can I be all for you?” I met the Dayton, OH, band who sang the original song in early 2004 during a night out in Indiana. After talking to them between sets, we hit it off. Before I knew it, I was driving to Ohio to watch them play, and sometimes to sing with them — I also sang and played guitar…