"I invite you to start your own conversations about grief and death."
"To encourage you to think and talk about grief I offer you two sets of cards: one set contains outdated messages long past their use; the second set is made up of new and different messages based on the individual nature of grief."
"I believe these conversations are the single most important way we have to understand our own grief and for our culture to rethink how we look at grief. Removing timeworn messages of sympathy that remain stuck in our culture is an important first step.“
Caren
There are two sets of grief cards with 14 cards in each set. One set contains outdated messages that tell a person who is grieving the rules: what the "grief period" should look like and how long it should last. A second set contains different, individual messages that emphasize how each person will grieve in their own way in their own time.
Caren initially wrote messages about grief to friends who were widows and widowers to encourage them to “ find a grief of their own.”
When she became more aware of just how difficult and uncomfortable it was for many people to even mention the word ‘grief’’, she decided to create these grief navigation cards that might be supportive of anyone who has experienced loss.
The #1 reason for creating these cards is to encourage people to think and talk (with self and others) about their experiences related to grief.
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*A special thanks to graphic designer Rhonda Ganz, who artfully framed Caren’s messages.