Bereavement – Claudia Putnam: Writer: Poetry & Prose

Thinning Down the House

Aug 14, 2012

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by

in Bereavement, Life Changes, Relationships

I’m moving on again. I’ve had to do this a few times in the past couple of years. Like a lot of people, we’re finding that the jobs we want or can get are not necessarily where we were living, or where we wanted to live. (Yay for the efficiencies of capitalism, as people take…

Dearly Beloved

Jun 13, 2011

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by

Claudia Putnam

in Bereavement, Death and dying, Grief, Life Changes, Parenting, Relationships

It took 22 years to come to this. I never knew what to do about letting Jacob’s ashes go. But I am taking a creative writing fellowship on the East Coast this fall. My ex-husband is also moving, and our other son is in college on the West Coast. It didn’t seem right to put…

Unpreparing

Mar 1, 2011

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by

Claudia Putnam

in Bereavement, Death and dying, Grief, Literary Inspiration, Writing

A further post on the matter of mentally preparing for death. Or un-. Not sure why I’m on this kick. But as I was in the middle of all these thoughts, a high-school English teacher of mine, David Weber, sent me the gorgeous poem below. It was written by another former teacher at Exeter, Charles…

Massive

Feb 21, 2011

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by

Claudia Putnam

in Bereavement, Death and dying, Grief, Life Changes, Relationships, Trauma

At the end of last year I posted about some “night terrors” after I met an older man contemplating his impending death. A high-school classmate responded by telling me of his heart attack a few years back. His comments are included at the end of the blog post; he says he felt an overwhelming sorrow…

Night Terrors

Dec 22, 2010

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by

Claudia Putnam

in Bereavement, Death and dying, Grief

Just last week I met a very elderly man with a terminal illness (let’s face it, we’re all terminal) at a party. We had a frank discussion. He said he was tired of funerals and hoped when he returned to his home state he could attend a few weddings or christenings instead. He dreaded reading…

In Honor

Apr 25, 2010

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by

Claudia Putnam

in Bereavement, Grief, Parenting

Dear little Jake, You had your great-grandfather’s nose, or so we imagined, based on photographs of him. You were alive for only three days, and writing that phrase makes me have to stop typing and cry. You were only alive for three days, and so we can only do an age-progression in our minds. When…

Category: Bereavement

Thinning Down the House

Dearly Beloved

Unpreparing

Massive

Night Terrors

In Honor