My First Post as a Contributor to Stroked to Life

http://strokedtolife.wordpress.com/2014/07/14/a-pebble-in-my-pocket/

I wrote an article today on the blog Stroked to Life. I wrote about my feelings of grief on the 30th anniversary of my father's death. Regular readers of Art History Alli know how much I miss my dad even though I have zero memories of him. 

If you choose to follow the link, I hope you read my words with the hope and gratitude they were written in.

 

I tried to pretend this day was like any other day, and it worked until I took my lunch break and got on Instagram. My amazing sister posted an adorable photo of herself as a baby with my parents. They all look so happy and young. I am so grateful to her for posting that sweet memory. 

I struggled the rest of the day to not cry and then I had an amazingly inspired conversation with my boss, which I talk about in the article. She asked if I was going to his grave tonight, which is something I didn't think of doing. I stopped by there after work and even though it was over 100 degrees, Dad's grave is shaded by a beautiful tree. I sat there next to the grave and wrote my post for Stroked to Life. I felt loved and inspired and like my dad was cheering me on. It is an honest post of how I have dealt with grief my entire life. 

Grief is a process and a constant battle but I am grateful for what it has taught me. We are not victims of grief but champions of hope and perseverance.