Coping with our loved ones ageing, getting ill, deteriorating and dying whether slowly or suddenly is huge thing. The stages of grief are deeply personal and there is much advice and support online to help people as they come to terms with their loss and process what has happened. Having cared for and now lost both parents, my mother suddenly and my father more gradually with dementia I understand all the stages of grief. What helped me initially was;
reading their memory books I’d help them write (recommended books - fromyoutome.com)
putting together all their photos, printing and framing them
watching the videos I’d produced about their lives; 65th and 70th birthday parties and a lovely day out we shared on a local steam train, my father talking about his work.
When we lose important people in our lives, written and visual records can bring back memories of them and help us remember everything that made them special and unique. They help us keep that person alive in our minds, through stories and memories — and that’s an important part of making sure our loved ones’ legacies live on.
When we lose people (and pets) who are special to us, we often tend to dwell on how they died. If the person was sick for a long time with a terminal illness, the memories of the person’s health struggles often stay first and foremost in our minds when we think of that person. Or if we feel any guilt about the person’s passing, we often focus on that.
We can get a kind of tunnel vision for the end of a loved one’s life — which is a totally normal and common experience.
But this is where our photos, memory books and Legacy Films can help. We can remember our loved ones’ whole life and the legacy they have left us.
They can remind us of:
The unique way they grew up, lived, worked and cared for us.
Their personalities, passions and hobbies.
How they impacted our lives, and why they were so important to us.
The memories we most want to remember when we think of them
For a free consultation about how I can help you record your own personalised Family Legacy Film please get in touch.
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