When a loving spouse or partner dies, whether a couple together for a lifetime or more recent, the thought of another, new loved one is the last thing on one’s mind and in one’s heart. Grieving takes time, and it should, to be fully embraced and honored in all ways. …

Out of the blue, my fit, healthy spouse of 20 years (my second spouse, at age 75) was diagnosed with the most lethal type of lymphoma. Overnight, we were thrust into entirely different roles. I had been “enabled” by my husband Ray to pretty much write and paint fulltime, while…

Most people at this moment are safe and healthy. But the pandemic is with us all, front and center. One shudders at reading or hearing of the family unable to be with their mortally-ill relative in the ICU…to share fervent expressions of love…at the least to say farewell. …

There is nothing new about the depth of grief for a person who loses their beloved. Death is a fact of life. It doesn’t matter if the soul passing is an elder, someone middle-aged, or young. …

Yet another consequence of the pandemic is that the subjects of death and dying are newly prominent in the national conversation. Even though the elderly are disproportionately affected, people of all ages — especially middle-aged caregivers — are confronting mortality perhaps as never before. …