Grandmother’s Coffin Being Carried Up to Her Final Resting Place on October 12, 2013

When a person loses a family member, many well meaning individuals will say…

“If there’s anything I can do, just ask.”

Often, the person who’s experienced the loss doesn’t know what to ask for. So they end up not doing so.

Instead, they try to numb their grief by making sure the funeral is something their loved one, who passed way, would be proud of.

• And then, they don’t have time to make dinner.
• Or, they forget to do any personal grooming.
• Or, they can’t be bothered cleaning the house.

They get so consumed with making sure the flowers, the music and the casket are “just so” that they ignore their day-to-day living.

That’s where you come in.

If you’re feeling helpless and you really want to help:

• Buy the grieving person a gift card to a local restaurant so they can take the family out
• Better yet, if you know them well, order and pay for take out and have it delivered to their door
• Pay for a maid cleaning service
• Offer to make phone calls to cancel doctor’s appointments, paper delivery service or their child’s piano practice
• If they own a business, offer to help with any work that needs to be scheduled and automated

Think about the day-to-day tasks that the grieving person may be ignoring, then see how a small gift of time can help. That’s what a grieving person really needs.

Shout-out to all who sent emails, tweets and Facebook messages of condolences. A special thank you to Anna Banks and Angela Price for the items I received in the mail.