AN OPEN INVITATION TO CARING FRIENDS AND PEOPLE FURTHER DOWN THE GRIEF ROAD

Is someone you care about grieving?  Do you have specific questions?  You can post them at Living in the Mystery,  my blog at www.MelodyBeattie.com/blog.  I’ll answer as soon as I can.  If you become a member of this site, you can participate in forums focused on specific types of loss.

This is just the beginning of the 101 Course in becoming a supportive friend.  I’ll include more articles in the public section and inside, for Members Only.  You're also welcome as a concerned person to attend our chats and workshops.  Most of them will be free, but occasionally we may charge a small fee.   I don’t want you  to fear that if you join you’ll be plied with emails or solicitations.  That won’t happen.  I promise. This site will have a small gift shop with items directly connected to grief solely for the purpose of making it easier for people to find something helpful to give to a loved one  who hurts.   That’s it.  No dues, membership fees, no tricks. 

The reason we’re doing the Members Only section requiring registration is to ensure that the Grief Club is a safe place to go for people in pain.  It also gives me an emergency contact number if I have concerns about someone’s well-being. These issues are covered in the Privacy Policies, which are monitored by an outside third party.  If you haven’t read them yet, please do -- right away.  Also, please review the Disclaimers and Code of Conduct.  By virtue of using this site, you agree to abide by the Policies, Disclaimers, and code. While they don't make the most interesting reading, it's important that you know what you've agreed to do or not do.

Also, this site isn't about only losing someone to death -- the big losses.  Parts of it could even be considered a way to do what's called Family of Origin work -- looking at and healing from losses from our past.  But even if you've already done your historical work, I encourage you to consider becoming a member. While I will spend as much time here as I can, this isn't a site that generates money.  I'll need to do work that produces income too.  We need people to become members who are further down the grieving road and can role model hope to those newcomers who are raw with grief.  I won't be able to be here 24 hours a day.  One thing that helps grieving people the most is to believe that they can get through whatever lies ahead and that someday, they will be at peace and happy again.  Knowing you’re not alone in your pain may not take the pain away but it can help make it more bearable.  If you had a loss in your life that you went through and have found your balance again, this is  an opportunity for you to make that loss count by sharing yourself with others.

Whether you're in grief, have been in grief, or care about someone who hurts, this is your site.  I’m here to facilitate it.  You are what gives it meaning and Life.  Together, we make an elite club – one we didn’t want to join.  We're the chosen ones -- chosen to feel pain  for a while.  The losses we’ve endured are too important not to make them matter.  Getting through your losses and reaching out to others turns you into one of only a few true  healers.  We need you.  So do others.

Warmest regards -- and let's make this a special place together,

Melody Beattie

And a special thanks to Chip Latshaw -- who helped make this site possible.