Category: Grief
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TCK Voices: Living the Chronic Illness Life as a TCK
I was living in the USA when I became chronically ill, and chronic illness shifted my values and worldview. The American teens around me were focused on achievement and independence. My values shifted to prioritize balance and community. The way I planned my days, talked about life, or took risks changed…
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Opinions, Comments, and Processing Others’ Ideas about Your Move
“Europe is good, it’s better there,” she said, and I wasn’t surprised she would think that. Everyone thought that. Well, except the Europeans. “You don’t have a boyfriend,” she observed, to my amusement. “That’s good, actually. Men in Europe are… more refined. Cultured. They like literature, and art… they have more…
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Emmanuel: God With Us in Every Culture
Christmas has a way of stirring our hearts toward home. The lights, the music, the smells from the kitchen — they all whisper of belonging. But for those of us living between cultures, the season often carries both beauty and ache…
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Sitting with Grief in the Between Spaces
As TCKs we know about loss, but do we truly know how to sit with our sorrow and choose next to have joy? How can we choose joy when we hurt so deeply?…
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It Gets Easier: Reflecting on 2 Years Since Repatriating
I know. That’s not what you wanted to hear. But it’s true…
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New Year, Same Problems: There is Wonderful Joy Ahead
Maybe you can relate. Maybe you too are dreading the new year. Maybe you are carrying more than you would want to. Maybe you are facing situations that won’t be changing anytime soon…
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Dealing With Disappointed Expectations at Christmas
I couldn’t be angry. I knew my husband was upset and didn’t want this interruption any more than I did. But I was really sad. Celebrating with him had been a core part of my vision for the Christmas I wanted…
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Find the Courage to Keep Your Heart Open to Friendship
The trouble with repressing grief and pain is that it will come back to haunt you later. You can try to sweep it under the rug – but you will end up tripping over the rug…
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On Saying Goodbye Before It’s Time: When I Find Myself Closing Off
“I was thinking,” my friend started, leaning against the kitchen counter. “Yes?” I said and took another sip of water before nodding encouragingly. “I could leave a few months earlier than I had been planning…”
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Working Through the “What Ifs”
I took a deep breath to steady my nerves, but I was so anxious I felt sick. I knelt on the cool tile floor of the school bathroom and prayed, “Lord, I don’t know if I can do this…
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When You Primarily Expect Hardships From the Hand of God
I never got to properly grieve my home, which I thought would be permanent. I never got to go through a repatriation program, because for two years we thought we would return. And through it all, I questioned God’s reasoning for…
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Treasures of Darkness: Loss, Trauma, and God’s Promise to Restore
In all the turmoil, my cat felt like the one gift of comfort reserved just for me. She took the edge off my pain…
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