A Grief Observed

Reading this book really displayed a different view of what death may feel like for our loved ones and ourselves. I have never experienced the death of a close relative or friend therefore I am not able to fully relate with what C.S Lewis went through. Because of this book I feel I have a better understanding of what grief may look or be like. I don't I am fully prepared to face it any time soon but it is something I honestly had not thought about. i really enjoyed how honest he is and willing he is to share his own experience dealing with grief. He really does show and explains the reality of grieving. It is not a cookie cutter response or the cliche. Even during his rough moments when he's upset and doubtful he is showing the reality of what one goes through during the grieving process, which not many people are willing to share with such honesty. Many times we think to comfort someone who is grieving is to say that everything is going to be okay and the their loved one is in a much better place but reality is we may not even know that. Grieving is not easy to get over; its not going to be something to simply pat down or give a weak response to- it will all be okay. No, reality is those grieving will become depressed, they will doubt and question, they may even become angry at times. C.S.Lewis makes it clear how normal it is for human beings to grieve. It is a natural consequence of the loss of a loved one.
As I read I wondered why we don't talk about death or grief. One of the reason's i think we tend to avoid talking about grief is because it makes us feel uncomfortable. I'm not saying we should talk about it everyday and take it to an extreme. I do however think that grief is something we should be aware of and know how to deal with. We may not have it all figured out and we may not have all the answers but what if we could do something more to help those who are grieving. Instead of saying what we think they want to here or how we think we will be when we lose a loved one, we are at least aware and can be somewhat ready, if at all possible to deal with it. Death and grieving is reality and it doesn't have to be a bad thing.