My dad died of cancer when I was 8... your parents are your whole world at that age. I always found it so impossible to empathise with others for whom divorce was a cause of grief - I would have done anything to be able to get on a bus to see my dad!
I've recently experieced feeling that professional envy can also be a form of grief - when you know that health issues have held you back but are constantly surrounded by people the same age who have achieved so much more. In no way comparable to losing my dad, but it still reminded me of it, in a way.
Susannah, I feel it is human nature for us to compare losses. Each of us grieve our own relationships to whom or what we have lost. I can't imagine how it felt for you.
And your comment about professional envy and grief, is aligned with a post I just finished writing about, and one that is close to my own heart.
Thank you for this!
My dad died of cancer when I was 8... your parents are your whole world at that age. I always found it so impossible to empathise with others for whom divorce was a cause of grief - I would have done anything to be able to get on a bus to see my dad!
I've recently experieced feeling that professional envy can also be a form of grief - when you know that health issues have held you back but are constantly surrounded by people the same age who have achieved so much more. In no way comparable to losing my dad, but it still reminded me of it, in a way.
Susannah, I feel it is human nature for us to compare losses. Each of us grieve our own relationships to whom or what we have lost. I can't imagine how it felt for you.
And your comment about professional envy and grief, is aligned with a post I just finished writing about, and one that is close to my own heart.
Death of a dream also comes with its own flavor of grief.
I completely agree
It certainly is! Thank you!
Great post Sherry. It's complicated!