PROMPTS FOR WRITING THROUGH GRIEF
(and other ways of working through it)

In this series about writing through grief (and other ways of working through it), we will explore:

• Introduction to this series
• Grief in special seasons of memory, like winter holidays, birthdays, and other special occasions
• Some ideas and experiences of my own related to dealing with grief
• Prompts and ideas inspired by Crafting the Personal Essay by Dinty W. Moore
• Prompts and ideas inspired by Paulette Perhach’s “30 Days to the Personal Essay” course.
• Prompts and ideas especially suitable for young people (but also helpful for older folks, too)
• Ideas inspired by Julia Cameron’s book The Artist’s Date Book

Some of these postings are quite long, but I hope that in them you may find a few gems that will help you through your journey with grief. And please remember to add your own thoughts, ideas, and prompts in the comments. Thank you so much.

Ideas inspired by Julia Cameron’s book The Artist’s Date Book

An important part of the grieving process is daily doing things that help you “get on with life” while not ignoring your memories or grief. These include, of course, daily life activities like hygiene and dressing; carrying on with your education or career; taking part in the life of family and friends; volunteering and/or helping others; engaging in hobbies you enjoy and/or learning new ones; and taking care of your physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual health. But sometimes there are also specific things that you can do which might not seem very important or significant but can be healing in their own right. One source I have found with many of these simple ideas is the book, The Artist’s Date Book by Julia Cameron. It is meant to stimulate your creativity, but it can also stimulate your emotions and bring light and joy into dark moments of your life.

Here are just a few examples from the book; each one is illustrated in the book with a fun line drawing, which itself may be encouraging and enlightening for you. You don’t even need to do them specifically with the thought in mind of the person you are grieving, or the healing you are seeking. Just choose some of them, adjust them if you wish to your own situation, and see what happens:

Go to a park; write a lullaby; buy fun shoes; make a sandcastle or twig teepee; experiment with a new food; wear a fake tattoo; invite friends for a traditional tea party; put stick-on-stars on your ceilings or walls; visit a sacred place; beachcomb; build a fort with blankets or boxes; play with squirt guns; make a puppet and entertain children with it; spend a day in silence; make something out of papier-mache; write a prayer and illustrate it; sing in the show; play with blocks, go fly a kite… and much more.

In the comments, share with us some things you do to help you “get on with life.” Thank you!