Grief Doesn't Expire (A Convo with Raven Thomas)

A Four in the Morning Podcast

If you’ve enjoyed and/or been helped by anything you’ve read, seen, or heard from me in the past few years (specifically in relation to the book We Go On, or the mini-doc) it’s helpful for you think of those things as fruit from a tree. Fruit is the finished product. It’s what you get at the end. It’s also helpful to remember that every piece of fruit has an origin story. A seed. Sometimes the origin story is much more interesting after you’ve tasted the final product.

With that being said, I wanted to share with y’all one of the most enlightening and inspirational conversations I had over the pandemic. It was with my good friend Raven Thomas, who is an orphan. It’s crazy how long it took me to type those six letters….o…r…p…h…a….n. Orphan. It’s not a word we use very often. Think about it. When was the last time you used that word in relation to someone other than Annie? It’s even more strange to use that word in relation to an adult, but the title orphan isn’t age-restricted (at least not for those who are living it).

Raven and I talked about what it was like to prepare for the joy of childbirth while living with the ongoing grief of not having your parents around. In this convo, I realized that everyone is prepared for the earthquake of grief when it comes, it’s usually the aftershock that catches them off guard.

So much of what you’ve read, seen, or heard as I’ve thought about this issue is free from the tree that began as this seed.

A recorded conversation with one of my dearest friends in the world.

I hope you enjoy! Tap-in and let me know what thoughts it brings to mind.

Peace,

John O