Oh goodness yes. I watched this with my maternal grandmother. The saddest days were the days when she remembered just enough to sense the shape of all she had lost. At the time, I thought, I mourned her twice - when she died, but also when she had lost her essential self. Thinking of that time as the time when we lost that shared grief experience is also powerful.
I got my latest tattoo two days before my mother's funeral, in November 2025. There's probably a book in these things, honestly. Thank you for sharing the story of yours, as you understand it now. (Experience has shown me they shift, with me, over time.)
A murder of crows flies past my window every morning without fail, and I have found myself attracted to these dramatic birds too. Thank you for giving voice to why they are such powerful message bearers to us. And, hey, great tattoo!
I’ve never gotten a tattoo but I want one! A crow is an excellent choice for a bird lover, even if not her favorite. I didn’t know all that about crows. I thought them standing around the body was then trying to figure out what killed that crow and trying to avoid it. But in any case, your points remain, and I love to learn all these facts. Also loved this, “They are not totems of death. They are companions in grief.” Perfect.
Tattoos are addictive. I highly recommend getting hooked. I’m actually scheduling a new one right now! Thanks for readings d commenting, and also for your writing.
Oh goodness yes. I watched this with my maternal grandmother. The saddest days were the days when she remembered just enough to sense the shape of all she had lost. At the time, I thought, I mourned her twice - when she died, but also when she had lost her essential self. Thinking of that time as the time when we lost that shared grief experience is also powerful.
I got my latest tattoo two days before my mother's funeral, in November 2025. There's probably a book in these things, honestly. Thank you for sharing the story of yours, as you understand it now. (Experience has shown me they shift, with me, over time.)
Thx for sharing your experience with your grandmother, Jennifer. Alzheimer’s grief is compound and undulating.
A murder of crows flies past my window every morning without fail, and I have found myself attracted to these dramatic birds too. Thank you for giving voice to why they are such powerful message bearers to us. And, hey, great tattoo!
I’ve never gotten a tattoo but I want one! A crow is an excellent choice for a bird lover, even if not her favorite. I didn’t know all that about crows. I thought them standing around the body was then trying to figure out what killed that crow and trying to avoid it. But in any case, your points remain, and I love to learn all these facts. Also loved this, “They are not totems of death. They are companions in grief.” Perfect.
Tattoos are addictive. I highly recommend getting hooked. I’m actually scheduling a new one right now! Thanks for readings d commenting, and also for your writing.
The lack of outrage and grief at the recent massacre of innocent children by their own father is just more evidence of our loss as a society.