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November 19, 2024 by Laura Diehl 2 Comments

277: Navigating the Holidays After Child Loss (with Kim Peacock and Sara Nelson)

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277: Navigating the Holidays After Child Loss (with Kim Peacock and Sara Nelson)
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The holidays can be absolutely brutal to those of us who have lost a child, especially those first few years. Even as we get further down the road, we never know how this time of year is going to affect us.

In today’s episode, Laura talks to two different pareavors on how they have navigated the holidays, both in the early years, and as they are now further down this path of being a bereaved parent and missing their child during the end-of-year holiday season.

 

Sara Faith Nelson taught elementary and middle school grades for 15 years. Now she enjoys pursuing her love of writing. The primary focus of her writing has always leaned toward themes of hope, faith, and trust in the goodness of God. Since the death of her daughter and only child, she writes about her grief journey and surviving a devastating loss. She continues to write about trusting in God’s goodness and grace while grappling with the hard questions. Sara and her husband, Dennis, live in Arizona.

Kim Peacock is the author of Victorious Heart, which details her handling of grief over the loss of her 17-year-old daughter. It also provides insightful advice for those seeking to support and help those who grieve. She has raised six children, residing with her husband, Larry in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee. Kim is the CFO of Peacock Engineering, a cemetery construction company that specializes in cemetery improvement and expansion. Through her blog, Wild Victorious Heart, and her book and speaking, Kim acts as a grief mentor to others in need. She enjoys spending time with her several grandchildren, gardening and playing with the animals on her mini farm.

(Note: The views and opinions of our guests outside of this podcast may not be in agreement with GPS Hope.)

Links Mentioned in this episode:

Click here for more info on Hope for the Future: An Advent Book for Bereaved Parents.

Connect with Kim with this link: www.wildvictoriousheart.com

Birthdays (November 17-30):

Lara Ann was born on November 17 and is forever 15.

Timothy Krawiec was born on November 17 and is forever 27.

Cord Ramsey Davis was born on November 18 and is forever 24.

Christian Story was born on November 18 and is forever 11.

Benjamin Krawiec was born on November 21 and is forever 32.

Logan Singer was born on November 21 and is forever 17.

Jacob LeTourneau was born on November 22 and is forever 21.

Melissa Sulikowski Hill was born on November 23 and is forever 38.

Cyrus Amado Salazar Jr. was born on November 26 and is forever 17.

Liam “Trip” Nugent was born on November 29 and is forever 21.

Raelyne Ten Bruggencate was born on November 29 and is forever 1.

Ginny Rettig was born on November 30 and is forever 21.

 

If you would like your child mentioned on the podcast the week of his or her birthday, click here to fill out the short form with the needed information.

The special song written for our children’s birthdays I Remember Well can be heard here.

Remember to Hold On Pain Eases; there is HOPE!

www.gpshope.org

 

To have Laura come and minister at your event, contact us at office@gpshope.org.

Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope) is here to walk with parents through the darkness of child-loss, guiding them to a place of hope, light and purpose.

It is a safe place for anyone who has lost a child from this earth. There is no shame or judgment in where you are in this journey, including if you are struggling in your relationship with God or your faith has been completely shattered.

Tagged With: bereaved parents, child loss, GPS Hope podcast, grief during holidays, grieving mother stories, holiday grief support, hope after child loss, Kim Peacock, pareavors, Sara Faith Nelson, surviving Christmas after loss

February 3, 2020 by Laura Diehl 4 Comments

I’ll Love You Forever

February is a month where “love is in the air” with Valentine’s Day. Personally, I always used this day to love on my kids, since I didn’t feel like Dave and I needed a day set aside to show our love for each other.

One reason the pain is so deep after the death of our child is because our love for him or her doesn’t go away when they leave us. The love we have for our children lasts forever, which is expressed in the writing below.

Forever

My child,
Flesh of my flesh,
Soul of my soul,
Part of my very being;
I had an instant deep and fierce love when I first saw you.
My heart was yours, and I knew I would give my very life to protect you.

And yet, here I sit, with the suffocating pain and darkness of knowing I was unable to protect you from death.

So now I find that just as deep and intense as my love for you, is the deep and intense pain of my grief in living without you. And yet I know that somehow, I must.

How? How God? How do I go on with a piece of my very being gone from this earth?

And as I ask and seek for this help, God in His tender love, compassion and faithfulness reminds me that I don’t have to live without you.

You are forever in my heart and my thoughts, and forever a part of my very being; that our separation is only temporary. You have just moved on to our eternal home before me and have unpacked and settled in, waiting for me and the rest of us to join you.

This isn’t a final good-by. It is an “I’ll see you later.” When I have the thoughts that I would give anything to see you again, to hug you or hear you laugh, I realize that I will! Maybe not as soon as I want to, but it will happen!

And so, I will wait. I will wait with hope, expectancy and even excitement to see you again. Every day I am here on this earth means I am one day closer to that desperate need that I have as a mother to love on you. 

And while I wait, I will choose to live my life in a way that is full; full of love, full of peace and contentment, full of laughter. And yet I know it will also still be full of pain and longing. For I have now learned that all of these things can live inside of me together.

So, let me say I am honored. I am honored and blessed to be your mom, and I imagine and dream of our reunion someday, filled with love and joy that goes beyond words to describe it.

But until then, I will have good days and bad days. I will have days filled with happiness, and days filled with pain. And all of those days I will continue miss you with every fiber of my being.

We grieve deeply, because we love deeply. That is one of the risks of love. But as the poem reminds us, our child is forever in our hearts and in our thoughts. He or she is forever a part of our very being. Our separation is only temporary, because God, in His deep love for our child and for us, made a way for that to be possible.

Consider praying this prayer with me: Lord, my deep grief is a reminder of my deep love that cannot be poured out on my child right now. But someday we will be together again, and all this stored up love will be dumped on my child! And Father, I ask that right now, you would give my child a big hug from me, and love on them in my place. Thank you.

 

If you were to buy a little Valentine gift to show your child how much you love and miss them, what would it be? I would love to have you share it in the comments below.

 

By the way, Laura has written a song that expresses some of the thoughts above. Click here to listen to the song Together Forever.

 

 

 

 

Expressions of Hope is written by author, speaker and singer Laura Diehl. She and her husband, Dave, are the founders of Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope). Dave and Laura travel full time in their Hope Mobile (a 38-foot motor home) to be more easily available for speaking and ministry requests, including being invited to hold one-day GPS Hope & Healing conferences.

If you would like more information about Laura as a speaker for your next event or want more information on hosting a GPS Hope & Healing conference, click here.

 

  • Check out the Grieving Parents Sharing Hope weekly podcast
  • If you are a bereaved parent, we encourage you to connect with us on Facebook.
  • If you are not a bereaved parent but want to support those who are, or want to follow us as we give hope to these precious parents, please connect with us at Friends of GPS Hope on Facebook.
  • Subscribe to Laura’s YouTube channel. 

Filed Under: Expressions of Hope Tagged With: bereaved parents support, child loss grief, child loss poetry, child loss support, expressions of love after death, forever in my heart, God's love in grief, GPS Hope, grief and healing, grief and love, grief during holidays, grief journey, grief prayers, grieving a child, grieving family, grieving mother, grieving parents, healing from grief, hope after child death, love after child loss, love and pain after loss, remembering a child, reunion after death, Valentine's Day grief

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Recent Posts

  • Life After Losing a Child: A Powerful Story of Grief, Healing, and Rediscovering God
  • Held Through the Dark: Trusting God After a Child’s Suicide
  • Navigating the Holidays After Child Loss: How to Hold Faith and Grief
  • We Heal Better Together: Watering the Seeds of Hope



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FREE DOWNLOAD

Rebuilding Your Life: A Gentle Guide Toward Hope and Healing After Child Loss

Download our FREE GUIDE, Rebuilding Your Life: A Gentle Guide Toward Hope and Healing After Child Loss. Discover how to find light in the darkness, reclaim peace in your broken heart, and start moving toward a life of meaning and purpose again.

 

IN THIS FREE GUIDE, I’LL SHOW YOU:

💛 GRACE FOR YOURSELF
How to release the pressure of grieving “the right way” and be gentle with yourself.

🕊️ LETTING GO OF GUILT
Steps to begin loosening the heavy “should haves” and “if onlys” that keep you stuck.

🌿 HEALING CONNECTIONS
Ways to engage with other grieving parents (pareavors) so you don’t feel so alone.

🌸 HONORING YOUR CHILD
Meaningful ways to carry your child’s memory forward with love and hope.

✨ FAITH & HOPE
Practical encouragement for walking with God through grief and discovering His healing touch.

and the exact 8 steps that have helped thousands of grieving parents move toward light, hope, and purpose after child loss.