Wednesday 18 December 2013

A Tragic Sort of Community

Yesterday's post (http://jodifriesen.blogspot.ca/2013/12/for-everyone-community.html) made me think about another online community I've sort of poked around the edges of: the baby-loss community.  I've read a few blogs of parents who have lost children in miscarriage, stillbirth, SIDS, or other tragedies.

I haven't lost a child, but I grieve with some friends who have.  When their babies died and I didn't have a clue what to do or say, I read some stories of others online and followed their anonymous grief journeys to have a clue about what my friends were going through.

Even as only a fringe visitor, I benefited from this baby-loss community.  I have become more sensitive to those who have lost a child and more comfortable with them talking about it.  I have become more aware of the prevalence and lasting effects of miscarriage and stillbirth.  I have prayed more for my friends Alison missing Grace, Jess missing Sky, Melani missing Annabelle, and Elsie missing Janice.

While I still don't really know what to say, I know that it is important to acknowledge the babies that are no longer with us, so their parents know that someone else remembers.  A life is a life, no matter how short - and even if only in utero.  A mother does not forget the baby she lost, no matter when she lost him or her.

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