The Artists’
Grief Deck

Our world has been in disarray from COVID-19 since March. If you’re like me and have a paper calendar, the following months look strange, empty, and not even representative of our own lives. Spend t...

Patiently wait for the tears to come. When they arrive, soften your belly and welcome them. Capture the image of your face while it is still wet and flushed. Visit this image often. Spend time observi...

If you have clay or playdough allow your hands to squish, mold, or shape it. Using a toothpick or pencil, write your loved one’s name in the clay/dough. Spend a minute remembering a way they worked...

Look at the sky.

Look at the sky out your window.

Look for all the variations of color and light you can see. Maybe there are clouds and they are moving...

Go outside. Find some nature. Find a bench. Watch ducks, squirrels, water. Observe your surroundings. Breathe. Enjoy nature....

After my mother died, I had the urge to plant something, to watch something grow. It felt good to sink my hands into the earth, feel the soil sift through my fingers. It felt tangible. Plant a tree, a...

Grief comes in waves. One day you're fine, the next you can barely breathe. The smallest thing can trigger a flood of emotions and memories, and it can be overwhelming. In my own grieving, I'm often t...

In the Quaker practice of worship, friends come together, seated and facing one another, for an hour of silence. For the first few meetings, the silence can be uncomfortable. Maybe even unbearable. Fo...

When we go through a hard time, we sometimes feel like we're torn up into a lot of little pieces. To help feel more together, rip up some old magazines and glue the pieces together into a new picture....

Tell your story in colours and shapes: Gather some paper and art supplies -- anything you like. How would you draw the story of your loss without using any identifiable images, just shapes and colours...

Grief is a four-dimensional possession. It fills some part of this room, and it also reaches back in time and toward the future. First study how 3D objects are enclosed: how 2D cloth or paper can be l...

With a journal you can write out your thoughts, feelings, fears, and emotions. You can be uncensored, unfiltered, and unapologetic. There is no fear of repercussions, only the allowance for you to get...

Gather paper, markers or pencils. This can also be done with collage materials. Make sure you have colors and images that remind you of your loved one(s). Make a map of your heart. Where is your grief...

close your eyes and look out the window of your mind. tell me, how fares the sky? is it dull or bright? heavy or light? be there sun or rain or fog or? — no matter what you find, just brea...

Look outside a window. Take note of the neighborhood you’re in, with all your senses. Sense the familiar or unfamiliar smells that are almost barely detectable. Hear the sounds that freely move and...

Bring your attention to your hands and simply touch the things around you. Be mindful of how these things feel, of how you experience their textures and vibrations through your fingertips. Touch your...

Losses of life interrupt the general flow of our lives. Things are not as they were, and life can feel chaotic. One way of bringing order into the chaos of loss is to establish healthy routines. Set t...

Find a supportive space to create a place to sit. Light a candle. Let yourself have some time sitting with this candle light. Your eyes can be softly open or closed. Think with this light. Feel with t...

You can’t bring back the dead, but you can learn their wisdom, passed down from generation to generation. What did you learn from your loved one? What were the gifts that you received? How might you...