December 16, 2025 • 32 mins
Grief can feel like the rug has been pulled out from under you—especially when the echoes of absence are amplified as your children leave home. In this deeply moving episode, grief coach, healer, and author Angela Clement joins us to explore how to honor profound loss while still building a life that feels true, grounded, and even joyful.
After losing her husband of 35 years to cancer, Angela shares her journey of rebuilding life from the smallest steps—a walk under open skies, jotting down gratitude, and trips to visit family—culminating in solo travel that rewired her sense of self. She provides practical tools for navigating grief and shares insights from her book, Awakening Through Grief, which blends her personal journey with prompts and exercises you can implement immediately.
Highlights & Key Takeaways:
- Honor love while rediscovering joy after loss.
- Reframe grief as a natural response to life changes, not a sign of weakness.
- Use nature and creativity as daily healing practices for emotional wellness.
- Practical tools for managing grief surges both in public and at home.
If you’re wondering if it’s too late to feel happy or purposeful again, this episode offers a kinder map for your journey. Start small, stay curious, honor what was beautiful, and take those steps toward what lies ahead.
Join us to learn how to rebuild and thrive after loss. Don’t miss this insightful conversation!
Angela Clement Bio
Angela Clement is a former school principal, speaker, writer, energy healer and the creator and host of the Awaken Your Soul’s Journey Podcast series on grief. She is also the author of her new book Awakening Through Grief: A Spiritual Journey of Healing and Transformation After Loss and has Co-Authored the book Good to the Last Drop with Podcast Host Irene Weinberg.
Find Angela Online: LinkedIn, X, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Website
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_02 (00:00):
It feels like the rug's been pulled out from
underneath of you.
And a lot of people did tell meyou will grieve for a lifetime.
And you will just learn to livewith this.
It will get easier to carry.
And for me, it just felt likethat was still so heavy.
And I really wanted to know ifthere could be joy again, if if
(00:21):
I could live a fulfilling lifeagain.
SPEAKER_00 (00:23):
Welcome to this Empty Nest Life, the podcast
dedicated to helping you embracethis transformative season with
purpose, passion, and joy.
In each episode, we explorestories, strategies, and
insights to help turn your emptynest into an exciting new
chapter.
Whether you're redefining youridentity, pursuing new passions,
or finding peace in the pause,you're in the right place.
Here's your host, the empty nestcoach, Jay Ramsden.
SPEAKER_01 (00:45):
Hey there, my emptiness friends.
One of the least talked-aboutstruggles we navigate during the
shift to empty nessing and agingis when you're faced with the
loss of your significant otherand the impact it has on your
life.
In today's episode, I haveAngela Clement, a compassionate
grief coach, healer, and authorwho deeply understands the
journey of loss andtransformation.
(01:07):
After losing her husband of 35years to cancer, Angela
experienced the profound realityof grief.
She now helps others see griefnot just as a dark, painful
chapter, but as a powerful doorto rediscovery and renewed
purpose.
Today she'll guide you towardsembracing your pain, honoring
your journey, and awakening tonew possibilities.
(01:28):
Angela, welcome to thisemptiness life.
SPEAKER_02 (01:32):
Thank you so much for having me, Jay.
I'm glad to be here.
SPEAKER_01 (01:35):
Yeah, I'm I'm excited that you're here because
of the story, because how it canhelp people.
And so many people at our stageof life, you know, we raise the
kids and we get faced withunexpected loss.
And sometimes that's the deathof a loved one in your case.
Sometimes it's just emptynesting.
Sometimes it's another majorlife transition.
(01:56):
But how did you, through yourown grief journey, help find
meaning and even a renewed senseof purpose?
Where did it come from and howdid it begin?
SPEAKER_02 (02:07):
Let's start it out just really me wondering if life
could be fun again, you know, ifit could be happy again, because
it feels like it can't.
SPEAKER_01 (02:21):
Oh, I would imagine.
SPEAKER_02 (02:22):
Yeah, it feels like the rug's been pulled out from
underneath of you.
And a lot of people did tell me,you know, you will grieve for a
lifetime and you will just learnto live with this.
It will get easier to carry.
And for me, it just felt likethat was still so heavy.
And I really wanted to know ifthere could be joy again, if if
(02:44):
I could live a fulfilling lifeagain.
And so, yes, I found it throughmeaning.
And it was, it took a lot oftime.
It felt like a lot of time.
It took a lot of soul searching,gut-wrenching questions about
(03:05):
why am I here, what's going on,what happened, why did it happen
to me?
All of those questions.
And in the end, I really foundmeaning through helping others.
And there's kind of a coolcorrelation between who Blaine
(03:25):
was and what I'm doing now.
So Blaine was really a socialcharacter, he loved to hear
people's stories, he loved totalk to strangers and find out
about them.
And I was more of an introvert.
And so, this what I'm doing now,stepping onto the podcast and
(03:46):
interviewing people, it is wayout of my comfort zone.
And yet it feels almost likehome because it is what he loved
to do.
And so now I'm I'm living it,I'm seeing why he loved it so
much, and it brings everythingfull circle and it really feels
(04:08):
good.
SPEAKER_01 (04:08):
Yeah, it's almost like honoring him in a way.
SPEAKER_02 (04:11):
Yes, absolutely.
SPEAKER_01 (04:13):
Yeah, I I I love that that it the full circle
component.
I would imagine too that therewas probably a lot of feelings
of guilt in even asking thequestion, could I find joy
again?
SPEAKER_02 (04:26):
Yes, yes, because you think if I'm joyful, then am
I truly missing my husband?
Did I truly love him?
If I'm, you know, you've gotthat wrestling going on in your
mind.
But I've learned that that's notreally how okay.
SPEAKER_01 (04:48):
How so?
SPEAKER_02 (04:50):
Yeah, so really what happens is the memories that you
have, those fun, happy memoriesare the ones that come to the
forefront eventually.
And I feel like that's the fuelthat I take moving forward.
I don't lean into, you know, hewas sick for 10 months, he was
(05:13):
in the hospital, the day of hisdeath, you know, all of that
stuff.
It's there, but it doesn't havean emotional charge to it.
What I take with me is all ofthe happiness and the joy and
the fulfillment that I got fromthat life that I lived.
And it's it's like I opened up anew door and now I'm starting
(05:35):
over again and building newmemories and a new life.
SPEAKER_01 (05:41):
Okay.
So I I would imagine at thetime, and I'm sure this happens
for most people who experience aloss, is like the feeling, the
overwhelming feeling of sorrowis just so heavy.
Yeah.
But there has to be some smallpractical steps that they can
take to even begin to moveforward and and maybe even heal
and rediscover what life couldbe like.
(06:03):
What would those small steps be?
SPEAKER_02 (06:06):
Yeah, they're different for everybody, but
there are some really goodtechniques that I can share for
people, and you can take whatworks for you.
So a lot of people talk aboutbeing connected to nature, and
this is a big one.
(06:27):
Going outside for a walk, seeingthe trees, the sky, the sun is
really healing all in itself.
And it does bring up emotionsoften when you're in that
silence and connecting withnature, but that is part of the
healing process, it's part ofthe natural process that we go
through.
(06:47):
And so it is one of the waysthat we can do that, but also
just being creative in any waycooking, writing, drawing,
painting, knitting, any of thosethings where your mind is
occupied in a way, but yet notin that space of you know
(07:12):
despair.
It's more of that creativity,uh, the joyful things that you
like to do.
Again, just dabbling into that alittle bit, I think, really
helps people.
SPEAKER_01 (07:27):
Yeah, I I love that you bring that up because it's
interesting.
I've spoken to lots of differentpeople who bring a lot of
different viewpoints to theshow, but for some reason,
getting out in nature andcreativity keep coming back
again and again and again.
And it's interesting to see howthat kind of is connected no
(07:47):
matter what we're going throughat any point in our lives, but
that the fact that it can reallyhelp in deep times of sorrow,
whether it's a loss of a lovedone or when the kids go and
leave, leave home and go off andbecome an empty nester.
Yeah.
So I know as we age, you know,some of us feel like you know,
joy and fulfillment are just wayback in the in the rear view
(08:10):
mirror, rear view mirror.
Yes.
Um, but I would imagine thateven strikes a little bit
heavier when you've lost yoursignificant other.
But what what message do youhave for people who are
listening who believe that it istoo late to find happiness or
purpose again after grief?
SPEAKER_02 (08:26):
Yeah, it's a natural thing to think that you know
life is winding down, or youknow, because we're kind of told
that too.
In all answers.
True, true.
We're often told that.
And we had dreams and plans, youknow, we were going to travel.
We were, I was so excited to bea grandmother and grandfather
(08:47):
and have you know the grandkids.
That was such an exciting thing.
And and then when the firstgrandchild showed up and he
wasn't there, it wasdevastating.
Just, you know, gutted me.
And I think now looking back, Irealize that all of that needs
to be felt, it needs to becaressed, it needs to be given
(09:12):
grace, you know, all of that hasto happen in order for you to
move past it.
It's not one of those thingsthat you can just shove in a
corner somewhere and not visit.
It has to be visited.
But through visiting that andthrough just being acknowledged
(09:32):
in that, I remember my friendsaying to me, you know, it must
be so exciting to have a newgrandchild, and yet it must be
so hard.
And just having someone elserealize that for me and just
acknowledge that that's normalto have those different feelings
(09:53):
and to be able to just say,Yeah, it is, you know, it really
is.
SPEAKER_01 (09:59):
It's it's uh it's not a either-or.
Either you are super excited tohave a grandchild or you're
super sad to have lost blank.
It's a both and you can be bothsuper excited for the birth of a
grandchild and still grieve theexcitement that would have been
there for for him and youtogether.
SPEAKER_02 (10:20):
Yeah, and there's no guilt in that.
And I think that was me.
You know, I felt really guiltyabout not being more excited
about like why why am I notmore?
I should be more excited.
Everybody else is excited,right?
Why am I not excited?
But you know, it's just thatstill moving through that new
heaviness of the emotion thatcomes with loss.
(10:41):
Yeah, yeah.
Have you done any travel?
SPEAKER_01 (10:44):
You mentioned you had this idea of travel.
Have you done that?
SPEAKER_02 (10:48):
Absolutely, yes.
And it was difficult in thebeginning.
I remember the first airplaneflight without him was just I I
remember crying, just couldn'tjust like too much.
But I'm so glad I took the step.
You know, even though I knew itwas going to be hard to do and I
(11:08):
could feel it, I'm glad I did itbecause each time I revisit
something that you know maybe wecouldn't do together, and I do
it on my own, it it actuallyfrees me up to continue.
It's yeah, it feels rough.
It's like ripping the band-aidoff quick, you know.
SPEAKER_01 (11:31):
Yeah, that pain.
SPEAKER_02 (11:32):
You gotta do it.
And then as time goes on, andMary Frances O'Connor talks
about this, you're building newnarrow pathways for that
experience.
And so you create a newexperience of your own with
travel.
And so that's what I did.
I did a lot of traveling.
SPEAKER_01 (11:52):
Okay, tell me what a lot means.
SPEAKER_02 (11:55):
I went, I started out, I went out to my mom and
dad's.
They live on Vancouver Island,so that was a good, you know,
good short trip that could pickme up, and it wasn't too bad.
And then I went to my aunt anduncle's down in Mesa, Phoenix,
and then I went with a friend toCosta Rica.
I went with my mom to Europe, Iwent with my mom and dad to
Hawaii.
(12:15):
So we've done a lot of differentthings, and uh and each time it
just got easier and more fun.
I also went on a trip to Baliwith a friend as well who had
lost her husband.
SPEAKER_01 (12:27):
So now lots of traveling, lots of travel.
How have you done any travelsolo?
SPEAKER_02 (12:33):
Yes, the traveling solo, yes.
When I went to down to Arizona,I spent a week by myself in
Sedona and just did a retreat onmy own.
SPEAKER_01 (12:47):
A great place for healing.
SPEAKER_02 (12:48):
Yes, yeah, and it was great because it was a
one-on-one, and it every daywas, you know, two or three
sessions with healers and youknow, just different sound
healing and all different kindsof stuff, breath work.
And I came out of that adifferent person for sure.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (13:08):
I I asked the question because I think it's
important for people who arelistening to see that it is you
were like, I the very firsttrip, I went to see my mom and
dad, right?
And then aunt and uncle, it'salmost like you're moving
further afield from like theconnectedness of you know the
family, just so you can start toexperience these small baby
steps up until yeah, I cantravel by myself.
(13:29):
Yes, what that looks like.
Yeah, I know that community andsupport are vital, peace and
processing grief.
How how can we re how can wekind of create or find spaces
that nurture that?
SPEAKER_02 (14:48):
Yeah, it's interesting that you asked that.
When I first started, I thoughtmaybe I could just do this on my
own.
Because as I said, I was anintrovert and I really didn't
want to go talking to peopleabout it.
Felt like I was just gonna cryand what good is that kind of
thing.
Um, but then when I realizedthat I could help other people
(15:12):
through what I'd been through,it just gave me a little bit of
fuel to step out there a littlebit.
So I started with writingactually.
I wrote blogs and I shared them,which was scary in the
beginning.
But then, you know, people arevery receptive and they were
very supportive.
And so then I thought, okay, youknow, I got my grief
(15:35):
certification course, and Ithought, I'm just gonna start a
small group, see, see who wantsto come.
And so I did that.
That's been going on for justabout it's been three years now.
That group has been together.
And and so I find that thatcommunity, as much as I set it
(15:59):
up to help other people, it'shelped me because I'm listening
to their stories, they'reacknowledging my grief, I'm
acknowledging their grief, andwe're sharing resources that we
can use to help each otherthrough what we're going
through.
And we've become kind of afamily, which is kind of cool.
So we meet every 10 days onZoom.
(16:21):
Anyone's welcome.
And it's free.
It's not, I'm not charging forit.
It's just one of those thingsthat I feel really good about
doing.
And the people there have beenthrough lots of them significant
losses and have come out on theother side living those joyful
lives, and they know how thisall works.
(16:44):
And so it's great to have, youknow, a bunch of people who have
gone through the same thing.
SPEAKER_01 (16:49):
I would I would imagine, especially when I I
like the frame grief as it'sgrief is when it happens, it's
basically driving your car, andthen eventually grief moves into
the passenger seat, and then itmoves into the back seat, then
it moves into the trunk, then itmoves into the car behind you.
But every once in a while comesback and drives.
Yes.
And you know what a memory, asong, whatever.
(17:11):
Yeah.
And I would imagine the group issuper helpful when those times
come up for people.
SPEAKER_02 (17:16):
Absolutely.
Yeah, even just sharing yourexperience of that helps others
because then they realize thatit's normal for that to happen.
And even me, you know, it's beenfour years now, the end of
October here.
And, you know, I was at uh ananniversary celebration and they
(17:39):
played our wedding song, and ittook my breath away.
And we had to leave for aminute, and that hasn't happened
for a very long time.
So, you know, those those wavescome further away, further in
between, you know what I mean?
And but when they do come, youjust know what to do, right?
(18:02):
You just I've learned the tools,I've learned the skills to
handle that, and I'm just like,oh, here we go.
SPEAKER_01 (18:09):
All right, let's not let let's not leave people
hanging.
Like you learned the tools andthe skills.
People are probably asking, whatare what are they?
Tell me some more.
Yeah, those things.
SPEAKER_02 (18:19):
I like to, if I can in the moment, I like to feel
into that.
So if I can get away andactually have a moment to just
feel it and allow it, then Ilike to do that.
But sometimes you're not in thatspace where you can do that.
And so what I like to do isenvision putting those emotions
(18:40):
into a waiting room and saying,you know what, I'm gonna get
back to you on this.
I can't do this right now.
I've got other things going on,but I promise I'll get back to
you.
And then later that night, Ioften will just write in my
journal what happened, and it'llbring everything back up again.
I could probably listen to thatsong again, it would probably do
the same thing.
(19:01):
And then you you allow yourselfto have that moment.
You allow yourself to feel itand to give yourself, you know,
it's almost like I envisionmyself putting my arm around me
and saying, you know what, it'sokay, because that was, you
know, that was tough, right?
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (19:20):
Yeah.
You almost like yourself nowwho's learned the skills, is
going back to comforting theperson who you become in the
instant when you hear the songor whatever it may be for that
that triggers you.
It's almost, oh, I've learnedthese tools and I can still use
them on myself.
Yeah.
In order to continue to moveforward, you know, and honor the
(19:41):
loss, but also remember I stillhave life to live.
SPEAKER_02 (19:44):
Yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER_01 (19:46):
I know your your work involves a lot of energy
healing and spiritual practices.
How have those helped you?
How do they help other people?
What does that look like throughthe grief process?
SPEAKER_02 (19:57):
Yeah, I I did visit a lot of energy healers and I
did a lot of energy healing onmyself and my husband all during
that time.
And and I still do because Ithink that it's just a natural,
our own natural way of healing.
And when we're attuned to it,when we're in tune to energy and
(20:20):
we can figure out how it flowsthrough us, we can really use
tools like meditation or breathwork or sound to help us um move
that energy.
And it's just it it soundscomplicated, but it really
isn't.
(20:41):
We make it complicated, right?
And so it's just a real naturalprocess that we all have that we
can all do.
Um, but what I did was I went toenergy healers, and what they
helped me with was just holdingspace so that I could move the
energy that I needed to move.
(21:02):
And it's not me that does thehealing.
It's the person who needs thehealing that does the healing.
So it's just holding space.
That's basically what it is.
And what happens is your bodynaturally gets into that state
where it can move again, it canbreathe again.
It can it helps to lift thoseheavy emotions that sometimes
(21:24):
you can't lift yourself.
And so I found it reallyhelpful.
SPEAKER_01 (21:30):
Yeah.
And you use the term holdingspace.
And I think for people who don'tunderstand necessarily what that
means, like we're both coaches,so we use that term kind of
readily, but it's it is beingjust curious about what's going
on.
SPEAKER_02 (21:45):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (21:46):
Yeah.
More than anything else.
What what have you been curiousabout now?
You you've experienced grief.
You've you lost Blaine four, youknow, four years ago this month.
And what are you curious aboutin your life now moving forward?
I want to give people some somesome inkling of hope.
SPEAKER_02 (22:04):
Yeah.
I mean, I continue to try tofind new ways to help people in
grief.
I'm continuing with the podcastbecause I I learn so much by
interviewing people, and I learnso much by being interviewed as
well.
And I love getting the messageout there that there is hope and
(22:26):
there is a way to move throughgrief.
And I also have since met a newpartner just recently.
And so, you know, I'm lookingforward to building a new life
in that direction as well.
And it's all just, you know,life is just always bringing us
(22:52):
new challenges.
And you can look at it assomething negative that's
hitting you, that's attackingyou, or you can look at it as an
opportunity to get curious aboutwhat kind of opportunities are
lying ahead and what can Iembrace and what can I move
towards now.
And I think we kind of got toleave that up to the universe
(23:16):
sometimes.
I mean, we we want to set goals,right?
But sometimes I don't know whatI want to do.
And so just being joyful andhappy in the moment and allowing
opportunities to come to meseems like easier than trying to
make something happen.
SPEAKER_01 (23:34):
Make something happen.
Yeah, I talk about that in mywork is the challenge of change,
where if you look at the wordchallenge, like the beginning
part and the ending part formthe word change.
So you really can't, you reallycan't have a challenge in life
without changing in some form orfashion.
And every time you go to make achange in life, you're gonna
(23:54):
face challenges.
Absolutely.
But the middle piece, the key toit all, which you just hit on,
you didn't even know you hit onit, is the is the middle part,
the L L E, which is let lifeevolve.
And that's what you're saying issometimes you have to just let
life evolve and it'll showitself to you.
SPEAKER_02 (24:11):
Yeah, and it can be more amazing than you can
imagine, you know.
Like I just would have neverseen myself doing what I do, and
I absolutely love it.
So amazing.
SPEAKER_01 (24:24):
I love that.
You you talk about in your bio,you talk about being an author.
Is that the blog, or do you havea book?
SPEAKER_02 (24:30):
I do have a book.
It's called Awakening ThroughGrief, and it's actually about
my story.
And because I was an educator inthe past, I put in practical
tips and exercises, prompts, andthings to help people just
process through their own storyor their own grief as they read
(24:51):
the book.
SPEAKER_01 (24:52):
Awesome.
And is that available?
People can find that Amazon orother places on Amazon.
SPEAKER_02 (24:57):
It's actually everywhere where books are sold,
and also it's on Audible aswell.
SPEAKER_01 (25:03):
Oh, okay.
Awesome.
I love that.
And I like the piece here, like,well, you know, have the
educator background.
I have the same background, mywife and daughter do as well.
But I love the idea.
Oh, yeah, there's going to betakeaways here.
Not just in this episode, but ifyou get the book, there's
there's actual exercise that canmaybe help you process and
understand better kind of howyou move through grief.
(25:24):
I take that back.
I don't like that phrase.
Yeah.
Move through grief.
You don't move through grief,grief moves with you.
But yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (25:33):
Yeah.
And I really explain it in thebook as a natural process,
really a God-given process.
Because, as you said, change isgoing to, it's inevitable.
We're always changing, and withchange always comes grief
because you're always letting goof something because of change.
And so you have to have thisprocess to get through that.
(25:57):
And we don't really have to lookstraight at it until it's a big
one.
And then now we've really got tolook and see what we're dealing
with.
SPEAKER_01 (26:05):
Yeah, I think people see grief as the only happening
when somebody passes, as opposedto no, you you grieve when you
leave high school and go tocollege because that group of
friends changes.
Right?
There's some grief there, or yougrieve when your own kids leave
the nest because it's a loss.
Anytime we experience loss ofany degree, their grief comes
with it.
(26:26):
Absolutely.
What's one thing you've kind oflearned about yourself through
this process?
SPEAKER_02 (26:34):
I think I've learned a lot more about who I really
am.
You know, I was always very shyand quiet, and I would say had a
bit of a self-esteem issue.
SPEAKER_01 (26:49):
Okay.
SPEAKER_02 (26:50):
Okay, and I'm still working through that, right?
But I'm learning that, you know,really the sky's the limit for
everyone and anyone.
And to be truly happy, itdoesn't take, you know, you
don't have to have the best car,the fancy house, the wonderful
(27:12):
job.
It's really about little thingsin life.
It's about the little thingsthat make you happy.
Those are the and the family andfriends and people around you
that really bring the happiness.
It's it's so much more simplethan we make it out to be.
SPEAKER_01 (27:30):
That, yeah, that is true.
What's one simple thing thatmakes you happy now?
SPEAKER_02 (27:36):
Actually, I love my grandchildren.
I would say that that isprobably the number one.
And of course, my kids and andmy new partner is great.
I still have my parents.
I have, you know, lots of familyand great friends.
And I think those connectionsare more important to me than
(28:00):
ever.
Um, I think I took that forgranted a bit before Blaine
passed, and I don't anymore.
Those connections are reallyimportant.
SPEAKER_01 (28:09):
They are.
They are.
What kind of what's the biggestmotivator in your life right
now?
You've you've kind of gonethrough the grieving stage.
You're, you've, you've you'velearned a lot about yourself,
but what motivates you in liferight now?
SPEAKER_02 (28:21):
I think my biggest motivation is really just
reaching out and helping otherpeople.
I just feel like when I do that,it's so fulfilling for me.
And I like to see the change inthe world, right?
Like it's just, and I know thatit doesn't take a lot.
(28:42):
A smile in the grocery storemakes my so it doesn't take a
lot to help other people.
And if we can just look towardsbeing kind to others, even in a
small way, it makes a hugeripple effect.
And I think that's a powerfulthing.
SPEAKER_01 (28:59):
It is, it is.
What's one piece of advicebeyond the kindness?
Because I agree, kindness alwayswins, in my opinion.
Is what's one piece of adviceyou would give people who may be
facing grief and the loss of aloved one right now?
SPEAKER_02 (29:15):
I would say don't give up.
Don't give up looking,searching, trying to find that
happiness again.
And I will say gratitude ishuge, even if you can be
grateful for something verysmall to start out with.
SPEAKER_01 (29:43):
Okay.
For somebody who is, I canimagine they're saying, I don't,
I don't even know how to evenstart being grateful.
Yeah.
Yeah.
What what would what would thatlook like for them?
SPEAKER_02 (29:53):
Yeah, the way I started was I had a journal and
in it it had three lines, threethings that you would be
grateful for.
So you kind of had a littlespace to write what happened
during the day, and then alittle yeah.
And then it was three thingsyou're grateful for, and one
thing you do for kindness, onething you did in the day for
(30:16):
kindness.
And I started in that journal,and at the beginning, it was
really hard.
It was like, I don't know whatI'm grateful for.
I mean, my I started it when myhusband was sick, you know.
So so I felt like there wasn't alot to be grateful for.
And as I went on, I think whatthe mind does, because you're
(30:37):
thinking, okay, what is it thatI'm grateful for?
Like what it starts to do thework for you, and eventually it
gets easier to figure out whatyou truly are grateful for.
And I started to see a commonthread through all of my
gratitude was often my family,the time I was spending with my
family, the things that peopledid for me.
(31:00):
And so then the kindness thingwas another thing.
I started to look for ways to bekind because I knew at night I
would have to write that.
And then it got easier.
You know, it just gotcommonplace after 10 months.
I on the day of my husband'sdeath, I wrote in that journal.
(31:22):
I wrote three things that I wasgrateful for and something I did
that was kind.
Wow.
And it felt good to me, it wasgrounding in some way.
SPEAKER_01 (31:34):
Yeah.
And I would imagine one of thosethings where maybe you were
grateful that he wasn't in painanymore.
SPEAKER_02 (31:39):
Yeah.
And the way my kids got Iwatched my my kids and I was
just like so in awe of the waythat they let go and and just
you know, held their father inthat space, and they were so
more mature, maybe, than Irealized, you know.
(32:01):
I was thinking to myself, gosh,we did a good job.
Raising those kids.
Yeah, I'm so proud.
SPEAKER_01 (32:07):
Of course, we should be grateful of that.
Yeah.
That's amazing.
Angela, before I let you go,what's what's one wish for your
future self?
SPEAKER_02 (32:16):
I think just joy.
Just joy.
I just hope for more joy, morehappiness.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (32:23):
I love that.
Thank you so much for sharing alittle bit of your story and
your journey, how you helppeople.
I I I hope, folks, as you'relistening to this, if you're
experiencing grief or you'regoing through something that is
kind of feeling overwhelming,that you know and can see that
there is actually maybe possiblysome joy on the other side of it
(32:44):
as you move through that.
So thank you so much for beinghere, Angela.
I appreciate it.
SPEAKER_02 (32:48):
You thank you so much for what you do.
SPEAKER_00 (32:51):
Thank you for listening to this Emptiness
Life.
Remember, this chapter isn't anending, it's an invitation to
redefine, rediscover, andreignite your life.
If today's episode sparkssomething in you, don't forget
to take that first step andvisit this empty nestlife.com
and click work with me to getthe conversation started.
Until next time, keep your heartopen, your mind curious, and
your spirit shining.
(33:13):
This Empty Nest Life is aproduction of Impact One Media
LLC.
All rights reserved.
It feels like the rug's been pulled out from
underneath of you.
And a lot of people did tell meyou will grieve for a lifetime.
And you will just learn to livewith this.
It will get easier to carry.
And for me, it just felt likethat was still so heavy.
And I really wanted to know ifthere could be joy again, if if
(00:21):
I could live a fulfilling lifeagain.
SPEAKER_00 (00:23):
Welcome to this Empty Nest Life, the podcast
dedicated to helping you embracethis transformative season with
purpose, passion, and joy.
In each episode, we explorestories, strategies, and
insights to help turn your emptynest into an exciting new
chapter.
Whether you're redefining youridentity, pursuing new passions,
or finding peace in the pause,you're in the right place.
Here's your host, the empty nestcoach, Jay Ramsden.
SPEAKER_01 (00:45):
Hey there, my emptiness friends.
One of the least talked-aboutstruggles we navigate during the
shift to empty nessing and agingis when you're faced with the
loss of your significant otherand the impact it has on your
life.
In today's episode, I haveAngela Clement, a compassionate
grief coach, healer, and authorwho deeply understands the
journey of loss andtransformation.
(01:07):
After losing her husband of 35years to cancer, Angela
experienced the profound realityof grief.
She now helps others see griefnot just as a dark, painful
chapter, but as a powerful doorto rediscovery and renewed
purpose.
Today she'll guide you towardsembracing your pain, honoring
your journey, and awakening tonew possibilities.
(01:28):
Angela, welcome to thisemptiness life.
SPEAKER_02 (01:32):
Thank you so much for having me, Jay.
I'm glad to be here.
SPEAKER_01 (01:35):
Yeah, I'm I'm excited that you're here because
of the story, because how it canhelp people.
And so many people at our stageof life, you know, we raise the
kids and we get faced withunexpected loss.
And sometimes that's the deathof a loved one in your case.
Sometimes it's just emptynesting.
Sometimes it's another majorlife transition.
(01:56):
But how did you, through yourown grief journey, help find
meaning and even a renewed senseof purpose?
Where did it come from and howdid it begin?
SPEAKER_02 (02:07):
Let's start it out just really me wondering if life
could be fun again, you know, ifit could be happy again, because
it feels like it can't.
SPEAKER_01 (02:21):
Oh, I would imagine.
SPEAKER_02 (02:22):
Yeah, it feels like the rug's been pulled out from
underneath of you.
And a lot of people did tell me,you know, you will grieve for a
lifetime and you will just learnto live with this.
It will get easier to carry.
And for me, it just felt likethat was still so heavy.
And I really wanted to know ifthere could be joy again, if if
(02:44):
I could live a fulfilling lifeagain.
And so, yes, I found it throughmeaning.
And it was, it took a lot oftime.
It felt like a lot of time.
It took a lot of soul searching,gut-wrenching questions about
(03:05):
why am I here, what's going on,what happened, why did it happen
to me?
All of those questions.
And in the end, I really foundmeaning through helping others.
And there's kind of a coolcorrelation between who Blaine
(03:25):
was and what I'm doing now.
So Blaine was really a socialcharacter, he loved to hear
people's stories, he loved totalk to strangers and find out
about them.
And I was more of an introvert.
And so, this what I'm doing now,stepping onto the podcast and
(03:46):
interviewing people, it is wayout of my comfort zone.
And yet it feels almost likehome because it is what he loved
to do.
And so now I'm I'm living it,I'm seeing why he loved it so
much, and it brings everythingfull circle and it really feels
(04:08):
good.
SPEAKER_01 (04:08):
Yeah, it's almost like honoring him in a way.
SPEAKER_02 (04:11):
Yes, absolutely.
SPEAKER_01 (04:13):
Yeah, I I I love that that it the full circle
component.
I would imagine too that therewas probably a lot of feelings
of guilt in even asking thequestion, could I find joy
again?
SPEAKER_02 (04:26):
Yes, yes, because you think if I'm joyful, then am
I truly missing my husband?
Did I truly love him?
If I'm, you know, you've gotthat wrestling going on in your
mind.
But I've learned that that's notreally how okay.
SPEAKER_01 (04:48):
How so?
SPEAKER_02 (04:50):
Yeah, so really what happens is the memories that you
have, those fun, happy memoriesare the ones that come to the
forefront eventually.
And I feel like that's the fuelthat I take moving forward.
I don't lean into, you know, hewas sick for 10 months, he was
(05:13):
in the hospital, the day of hisdeath, you know, all of that
stuff.
It's there, but it doesn't havean emotional charge to it.
What I take with me is all ofthe happiness and the joy and
the fulfillment that I got fromthat life that I lived.
And it's it's like I opened up anew door and now I'm starting
(05:35):
over again and building newmemories and a new life.
SPEAKER_01 (05:41):
Okay.
So I I would imagine at thetime, and I'm sure this happens
for most people who experience aloss, is like the feeling, the
overwhelming feeling of sorrowis just so heavy.
Yeah.
But there has to be some smallpractical steps that they can
take to even begin to moveforward and and maybe even heal
and rediscover what life couldbe like.
(06:03):
What would those small steps be?
SPEAKER_02 (06:06):
Yeah, they're different for everybody, but
there are some really goodtechniques that I can share for
people, and you can take whatworks for you.
So a lot of people talk aboutbeing connected to nature, and
this is a big one.
(06:27):
Going outside for a walk, seeingthe trees, the sky, the sun is
really healing all in itself.
And it does bring up emotionsoften when you're in that
silence and connecting withnature, but that is part of the
healing process, it's part ofthe natural process that we go
through.
(06:47):
And so it is one of the waysthat we can do that, but also
just being creative in any waycooking, writing, drawing,
painting, knitting, any of thosethings where your mind is
occupied in a way, but yet notin that space of you know
(07:12):
despair.
It's more of that creativity,uh, the joyful things that you
like to do.
Again, just dabbling into that alittle bit, I think, really
helps people.
SPEAKER_01 (07:27):
Yeah, I I love that you bring that up because it's
interesting.
I've spoken to lots of differentpeople who bring a lot of
different viewpoints to theshow, but for some reason,
getting out in nature andcreativity keep coming back
again and again and again.
And it's interesting to see howthat kind of is connected no
(07:47):
matter what we're going throughat any point in our lives, but
that the fact that it can reallyhelp in deep times of sorrow,
whether it's a loss of a lovedone or when the kids go and
leave, leave home and go off andbecome an empty nester.
Yeah.
So I know as we age, you know,some of us feel like you know,
joy and fulfillment are just wayback in the in the rear view
(08:10):
mirror, rear view mirror.
Yes.
Um, but I would imagine thateven strikes a little bit
heavier when you've lost yoursignificant other.
But what what message do youhave for people who are
listening who believe that it istoo late to find happiness or
purpose again after grief?
SPEAKER_02 (08:26):
Yeah, it's a natural thing to think that you know
life is winding down, or youknow, because we're kind of told
that too.
In all answers.
True, true.
We're often told that.
And we had dreams and plans, youknow, we were going to travel.
We were, I was so excited to bea grandmother and grandfather
(08:47):
and have you know the grandkids.
That was such an exciting thing.
And and then when the firstgrandchild showed up and he
wasn't there, it wasdevastating.
Just, you know, gutted me.
And I think now looking back, Irealize that all of that needs
to be felt, it needs to becaressed, it needs to be given
(09:12):
grace, you know, all of that hasto happen in order for you to
move past it.
It's not one of those thingsthat you can just shove in a
corner somewhere and not visit.
It has to be visited.
But through visiting that andthrough just being acknowledged
(09:32):
in that, I remember my friendsaying to me, you know, it must
be so exciting to have a newgrandchild, and yet it must be
so hard.
And just having someone elserealize that for me and just
acknowledge that that's normalto have those different feelings
(09:53):
and to be able to just say,Yeah, it is, you know, it really
is.
SPEAKER_01 (09:59):
It's it's uh it's not a either-or.
Either you are super excited tohave a grandchild or you're
super sad to have lost blank.
It's a both and you can be bothsuper excited for the birth of a
grandchild and still grieve theexcitement that would have been
there for for him and youtogether.
SPEAKER_02 (10:20):
Yeah, and there's no guilt in that.
And I think that was me.
You know, I felt really guiltyabout not being more excited
about like why why am I notmore?
I should be more excited.
Everybody else is excited,right?
Why am I not excited?
But you know, it's just thatstill moving through that new
heaviness of the emotion thatcomes with loss.
(10:41):
Yeah, yeah.
Have you done any travel?
SPEAKER_01 (10:44):
You mentioned you had this idea of travel.
Have you done that?
SPEAKER_02 (10:48):
Absolutely, yes.
And it was difficult in thebeginning.
I remember the first airplaneflight without him was just I I
remember crying, just couldn'tjust like too much.
But I'm so glad I took the step.
You know, even though I knew itwas going to be hard to do and I
(11:08):
could feel it, I'm glad I did itbecause each time I revisit
something that you know maybe wecouldn't do together, and I do
it on my own, it it actuallyfrees me up to continue.
It's yeah, it feels rough.
It's like ripping the band-aidoff quick, you know.
SPEAKER_01 (11:31):
Yeah, that pain.
SPEAKER_02 (11:32):
You gotta do it.
And then as time goes on, andMary Frances O'Connor talks
about this, you're building newnarrow pathways for that
experience.
And so you create a newexperience of your own with
travel.
And so that's what I did.
I did a lot of traveling.
SPEAKER_01 (11:52):
Okay, tell me what a lot means.
SPEAKER_02 (11:55):
I went, I started out, I went out to my mom and
dad's.
They live on Vancouver Island,so that was a good, you know,
good short trip that could pickme up, and it wasn't too bad.
And then I went to my aunt anduncle's down in Mesa, Phoenix,
and then I went with a friend toCosta Rica.
I went with my mom to Europe, Iwent with my mom and dad to
Hawaii.
(12:15):
So we've done a lot of differentthings, and uh and each time it
just got easier and more fun.
I also went on a trip to Baliwith a friend as well who had
lost her husband.
SPEAKER_01 (12:27):
So now lots of traveling, lots of travel.
How have you done any travelsolo?
SPEAKER_02 (12:33):
Yes, the traveling solo, yes.
When I went to down to Arizona,I spent a week by myself in
Sedona and just did a retreat onmy own.
SPEAKER_01 (12:47):
A great place for healing.
SPEAKER_02 (12:48):
Yes, yeah, and it was great because it was a
one-on-one, and it every daywas, you know, two or three
sessions with healers and youknow, just different sound
healing and all different kindsof stuff, breath work.
And I came out of that adifferent person for sure.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (13:08):
I I asked the question because I think it's
important for people who arelistening to see that it is you
were like, I the very firsttrip, I went to see my mom and
dad, right?
And then aunt and uncle, it'salmost like you're moving
further afield from like theconnectedness of you know the
family, just so you can start toexperience these small baby
steps up until yeah, I cantravel by myself.
(13:29):
Yes, what that looks like.
Yeah, I know that community andsupport are vital, peace and
processing grief.
How how can we re how can wekind of create or find spaces
that nurture that?
SPEAKER_02 (14:48):
Yeah, it's interesting that you asked that.
When I first started, I thoughtmaybe I could just do this on my
own.
Because as I said, I was anintrovert and I really didn't
want to go talking to peopleabout it.
Felt like I was just gonna cryand what good is that kind of
thing.
Um, but then when I realizedthat I could help other people
(15:12):
through what I'd been through,it just gave me a little bit of
fuel to step out there a littlebit.
So I started with writingactually.
I wrote blogs and I shared them,which was scary in the
beginning.
But then, you know, people arevery receptive and they were
very supportive.
And so then I thought, okay, youknow, I got my grief
(15:35):
certification course, and Ithought, I'm just gonna start a
small group, see, see who wantsto come.
And so I did that.
That's been going on for justabout it's been three years now.
That group has been together.
And and so I find that thatcommunity, as much as I set it
(15:59):
up to help other people, it'shelped me because I'm listening
to their stories, they'reacknowledging my grief, I'm
acknowledging their grief, andwe're sharing resources that we
can use to help each otherthrough what we're going
through.
And we've become kind of afamily, which is kind of cool.
So we meet every 10 days onZoom.
(16:21):
Anyone's welcome.
And it's free.
It's not, I'm not charging forit.
It's just one of those thingsthat I feel really good about
doing.
And the people there have beenthrough lots of them significant
losses and have come out on theother side living those joyful
lives, and they know how thisall works.
(16:44):
And so it's great to have, youknow, a bunch of people who have
gone through the same thing.
SPEAKER_01 (16:49):
I would I would imagine, especially when I I
like the frame grief as it'sgrief is when it happens, it's
basically driving your car, andthen eventually grief moves into
the passenger seat, and then itmoves into the back seat, then
it moves into the trunk, then itmoves into the car behind you.
But every once in a while comesback and drives.
Yes.
And you know what a memory, asong, whatever.
(17:11):
Yeah.
And I would imagine the group issuper helpful when those times
come up for people.
SPEAKER_02 (17:16):
Absolutely.
Yeah, even just sharing yourexperience of that helps others
because then they realize thatit's normal for that to happen.
And even me, you know, it's beenfour years now, the end of
October here.
And, you know, I was at uh ananniversary celebration and they
(17:39):
played our wedding song, and ittook my breath away.
And we had to leave for aminute, and that hasn't happened
for a very long time.
So, you know, those those wavescome further away, further in
between, you know what I mean?
And but when they do come, youjust know what to do, right?
(18:02):
You just I've learned the tools,I've learned the skills to
handle that, and I'm just like,oh, here we go.
SPEAKER_01 (18:09):
All right, let's not let let's not leave people
hanging.
Like you learned the tools andthe skills.
People are probably asking, whatare what are they?
Tell me some more.
Yeah, those things.
SPEAKER_02 (18:19):
I like to, if I can in the moment, I like to feel
into that.
So if I can get away andactually have a moment to just
feel it and allow it, then Ilike to do that.
But sometimes you're not in thatspace where you can do that.
And so what I like to do isenvision putting those emotions
(18:40):
into a waiting room and saying,you know what, I'm gonna get
back to you on this.
I can't do this right now.
I've got other things going on,but I promise I'll get back to
you.
And then later that night, Ioften will just write in my
journal what happened, and it'llbring everything back up again.
I could probably listen to thatsong again, it would probably do
the same thing.
(19:01):
And then you you allow yourselfto have that moment.
You allow yourself to feel itand to give yourself, you know,
it's almost like I envisionmyself putting my arm around me
and saying, you know what, it'sokay, because that was, you
know, that was tough, right?
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (19:20):
Yeah.
You almost like yourself nowwho's learned the skills, is
going back to comforting theperson who you become in the
instant when you hear the songor whatever it may be for that
that triggers you.
It's almost, oh, I've learnedthese tools and I can still use
them on myself.
Yeah.
In order to continue to moveforward, you know, and honor the
(19:41):
loss, but also remember I stillhave life to live.
SPEAKER_02 (19:44):
Yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER_01 (19:46):
I know your your work involves a lot of energy
healing and spiritual practices.
How have those helped you?
How do they help other people?
What does that look like throughthe grief process?
SPEAKER_02 (19:57):
Yeah, I I did visit a lot of energy healers and I
did a lot of energy healing onmyself and my husband all during
that time.
And and I still do because Ithink that it's just a natural,
our own natural way of healing.
And when we're attuned to it,when we're in tune to energy and
(20:20):
we can figure out how it flowsthrough us, we can really use
tools like meditation or breathwork or sound to help us um move
that energy.
And it's just it it soundscomplicated, but it really
isn't.
(20:41):
We make it complicated, right?
And so it's just a real naturalprocess that we all have that we
can all do.
Um, but what I did was I went toenergy healers, and what they
helped me with was just holdingspace so that I could move the
energy that I needed to move.
(21:02):
And it's not me that does thehealing.
It's the person who needs thehealing that does the healing.
So it's just holding space.
That's basically what it is.
And what happens is your bodynaturally gets into that state
where it can move again, it canbreathe again.
It can it helps to lift thoseheavy emotions that sometimes
(21:24):
you can't lift yourself.
And so I found it reallyhelpful.
SPEAKER_01 (21:30):
Yeah.
And you use the term holdingspace.
And I think for people who don'tunderstand necessarily what that
means, like we're both coaches,so we use that term kind of
readily, but it's it is beingjust curious about what's going
on.
SPEAKER_02 (21:45):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (21:46):
Yeah.
More than anything else.
What what have you been curiousabout now?
You you've experienced grief.
You've you lost Blaine four, youknow, four years ago this month.
And what are you curious aboutin your life now moving forward?
I want to give people some somesome inkling of hope.
SPEAKER_02 (22:04):
Yeah.
I mean, I continue to try tofind new ways to help people in
grief.
I'm continuing with the podcastbecause I I learn so much by
interviewing people, and I learnso much by being interviewed as
well.
And I love getting the messageout there that there is hope and
(22:26):
there is a way to move throughgrief.
And I also have since met a newpartner just recently.
And so, you know, I'm lookingforward to building a new life
in that direction as well.
And it's all just, you know,life is just always bringing us
(22:52):
new challenges.
And you can look at it assomething negative that's
hitting you, that's attackingyou, or you can look at it as an
opportunity to get curious aboutwhat kind of opportunities are
lying ahead and what can Iembrace and what can I move
towards now.
And I think we kind of got toleave that up to the universe
(23:16):
sometimes.
I mean, we we want to set goals,right?
But sometimes I don't know whatI want to do.
And so just being joyful andhappy in the moment and allowing
opportunities to come to meseems like easier than trying to
make something happen.
SPEAKER_01 (23:34):
Make something happen.
Yeah, I talk about that in mywork is the challenge of change,
where if you look at the wordchallenge, like the beginning
part and the ending part formthe word change.
So you really can't, you reallycan't have a challenge in life
without changing in some form orfashion.
And every time you go to make achange in life, you're gonna
(23:54):
face challenges.
Absolutely.
But the middle piece, the key toit all, which you just hit on,
you didn't even know you hit onit, is the is the middle part,
the L L E, which is let lifeevolve.
And that's what you're saying issometimes you have to just let
life evolve and it'll showitself to you.
SPEAKER_02 (24:11):
Yeah, and it can be more amazing than you can
imagine, you know.
Like I just would have neverseen myself doing what I do, and
I absolutely love it.
So amazing.
SPEAKER_01 (24:24):
I love that.
You you talk about in your bio,you talk about being an author.
Is that the blog, or do you havea book?
SPEAKER_02 (24:30):
I do have a book.
It's called Awakening ThroughGrief, and it's actually about
my story.
And because I was an educator inthe past, I put in practical
tips and exercises, prompts, andthings to help people just
process through their own storyor their own grief as they read
(24:51):
the book.
SPEAKER_01 (24:52):
Awesome.
And is that available?
People can find that Amazon orother places on Amazon.
SPEAKER_02 (24:57):
It's actually everywhere where books are sold,
and also it's on Audible aswell.
SPEAKER_01 (25:03):
Oh, okay.
Awesome.
I love that.
And I like the piece here, like,well, you know, have the
educator background.
I have the same background, mywife and daughter do as well.
But I love the idea.
Oh, yeah, there's going to betakeaways here.
Not just in this episode, but ifyou get the book, there's
there's actual exercise that canmaybe help you process and
understand better kind of howyou move through grief.
(25:24):
I take that back.
I don't like that phrase.
Yeah.
Move through grief.
You don't move through grief,grief moves with you.
But yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (25:33):
Yeah.
And I really explain it in thebook as a natural process,
really a God-given process.
Because, as you said, change isgoing to, it's inevitable.
We're always changing, and withchange always comes grief
because you're always letting goof something because of change.
And so you have to have thisprocess to get through that.
(25:57):
And we don't really have to lookstraight at it until it's a big
one.
And then now we've really got tolook and see what we're dealing
with.
SPEAKER_01 (26:05):
Yeah, I think people see grief as the only happening
when somebody passes, as opposedto no, you you grieve when you
leave high school and go tocollege because that group of
friends changes.
Right?
There's some grief there, or yougrieve when your own kids leave
the nest because it's a loss.
Anytime we experience loss ofany degree, their grief comes
with it.
(26:26):
Absolutely.
What's one thing you've kind oflearned about yourself through
this process?
SPEAKER_02 (26:34):
I think I've learned a lot more about who I really
am.
You know, I was always very shyand quiet, and I would say had a
bit of a self-esteem issue.
SPEAKER_01 (26:49):
Okay.
SPEAKER_02 (26:50):
Okay, and I'm still working through that, right?
But I'm learning that, you know,really the sky's the limit for
everyone and anyone.
And to be truly happy, itdoesn't take, you know, you
don't have to have the best car,the fancy house, the wonderful
(27:12):
job.
It's really about little thingsin life.
It's about the little thingsthat make you happy.
Those are the and the family andfriends and people around you
that really bring the happiness.
It's it's so much more simplethan we make it out to be.
SPEAKER_01 (27:30):
That, yeah, that is true.
What's one simple thing thatmakes you happy now?
SPEAKER_02 (27:36):
Actually, I love my grandchildren.
I would say that that isprobably the number one.
And of course, my kids and andmy new partner is great.
I still have my parents.
I have, you know, lots of familyand great friends.
And I think those connectionsare more important to me than
(28:00):
ever.
Um, I think I took that forgranted a bit before Blaine
passed, and I don't anymore.
Those connections are reallyimportant.
SPEAKER_01 (28:09):
They are.
They are.
What kind of what's the biggestmotivator in your life right
now?
You've you've kind of gonethrough the grieving stage.
You're, you've, you've you'velearned a lot about yourself,
but what motivates you in liferight now?
SPEAKER_02 (28:21):
I think my biggest motivation is really just
reaching out and helping otherpeople.
I just feel like when I do that,it's so fulfilling for me.
And I like to see the change inthe world, right?
Like it's just, and I know thatit doesn't take a lot.
(28:42):
A smile in the grocery storemakes my so it doesn't take a
lot to help other people.
And if we can just look towardsbeing kind to others, even in a
small way, it makes a hugeripple effect.
And I think that's a powerfulthing.
SPEAKER_01 (28:59):
It is, it is.
What's one piece of advicebeyond the kindness?
Because I agree, kindness alwayswins, in my opinion.
Is what's one piece of adviceyou would give people who may be
facing grief and the loss of aloved one right now?
SPEAKER_02 (29:15):
I would say don't give up.
Don't give up looking,searching, trying to find that
happiness again.
And I will say gratitude ishuge, even if you can be
grateful for something verysmall to start out with.
SPEAKER_01 (29:43):
Okay.
For somebody who is, I canimagine they're saying, I don't,
I don't even know how to evenstart being grateful.
Yeah.
Yeah.
What what would what would thatlook like for them?
SPEAKER_02 (29:53):
Yeah, the way I started was I had a journal and
in it it had three lines, threethings that you would be
grateful for.
So you kind of had a littlespace to write what happened
during the day, and then alittle yeah.
And then it was three thingsyou're grateful for, and one
thing you do for kindness, onething you did in the day for
(30:16):
kindness.
And I started in that journal,and at the beginning, it was
really hard.
It was like, I don't know whatI'm grateful for.
I mean, my I started it when myhusband was sick, you know.
So so I felt like there wasn't alot to be grateful for.
And as I went on, I think whatthe mind does, because you're
(30:37):
thinking, okay, what is it thatI'm grateful for?
Like what it starts to do thework for you, and eventually it
gets easier to figure out whatyou truly are grateful for.
And I started to see a commonthread through all of my
gratitude was often my family,the time I was spending with my
family, the things that peopledid for me.
(31:00):
And so then the kindness thingwas another thing.
I started to look for ways to bekind because I knew at night I
would have to write that.
And then it got easier.
You know, it just gotcommonplace after 10 months.
I on the day of my husband'sdeath, I wrote in that journal.
(31:22):
I wrote three things that I wasgrateful for and something I did
that was kind.
Wow.
And it felt good to me, it wasgrounding in some way.
SPEAKER_01 (31:34):
Yeah.
And I would imagine one of thosethings where maybe you were
grateful that he wasn't in painanymore.
SPEAKER_02 (31:39):
Yeah.
And the way my kids got Iwatched my my kids and I was
just like so in awe of the waythat they let go and and just
you know, held their father inthat space, and they were so
more mature, maybe, than Irealized, you know.
(32:01):
I was thinking to myself, gosh,we did a good job.
Raising those kids.
Yeah, I'm so proud.
SPEAKER_01 (32:07):
Of course, we should be grateful of that.
Yeah.
That's amazing.
Angela, before I let you go,what's what's one wish for your
future self?
SPEAKER_02 (32:16):
I think just joy.
Just joy.
I just hope for more joy, morehappiness.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (32:23):
I love that.
Thank you so much for sharing alittle bit of your story and
your journey, how you helppeople.
I I I hope, folks, as you'relistening to this, if you're
experiencing grief or you'regoing through something that is
kind of feeling overwhelming,that you know and can see that
there is actually maybe possiblysome joy on the other side of it
(32:44):
as you move through that.
So thank you so much for beinghere, Angela.
I appreciate it.
SPEAKER_02 (32:48):
You thank you so much for what you do.
SPEAKER_00 (32:51):
Thank you for listening to this Emptiness
Life.
Remember, this chapter isn't anending, it's an invitation to
redefine, rediscover, andreignite your life.
If today's episode sparkssomething in you, don't forget
to take that first step andvisit this empty nestlife.com
and click work with me to getthe conversation started.
Until next time, keep your heartopen, your mind curious, and
your spirit shining.
(33:13):
This Empty Nest Life is aproduction of Impact One Media
LLC.
All rights reserved.
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