The Artists’
Grief Deck

What you've lost is no longer with you, but your memories of it are. Hold them inside of you and keep them alive. Keep yourself alive. Breathe. Hold that breath in, let it go. In, and out, and in agai...

They say that smell is the strongest sense we have especially when it is attached to a memory. In India, I light up incense sticks that remind me of my religious grandmother doing pujas. It almost fee...

I grieve not only for the losses of the present but also for what could have been. If I stay too long in my head imagining the things I won't ever have, I can lose myself in a spiral downward. When I...

When I am going through a difficult phase I tend to bottle everything up. I used to think it was normal to do this and that it was a more efficient way of dealing with my feelings. Through doing this...

Remember a vanished place of personal importance. Describe it, by writing or speaking of it....

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...

Read your favorite stories aloud and believe with all of your heart your loved one is listening closely to every page....

No estas exagerando, es algo que te duele y esta bien que necesites tiempo para sanar. ¡Tómate tu tiempo, pero no demores; hay mucho por hacer! You are not exaggerating, it is something that hurts...

Write your cheer. Design your moves. Try it out!...

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...

A Walking Meditation Take a quiet walk toward an outdoor place you enjoy such as a park, beach, or woods. As you walk, pick up any small stones that catch your eye. Stop long enough to examine each st...

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...

We are integrated people, made up of our physical, mental, spiritual and social components. Good self-care involves all four components. Taking a walk, eating a well- balanced diet, resting well all c...

Find something that you think your loved one would have loved and love it for them. It doesn’t have to be anything special or perfect. Maybe it is a simple object in your home, outside in nature, or...

In grief, time feels like the enemy. Making music helped me find a better relationship with time when feeling difficult emotions. Even if you have not played in a long time, there is no bad time to ge...

“Flowers in April” addresses the grieving process of losing a loved one and the search of closure. The owl in the painting represents silence of solitude to the people who passed away during the p...

Allow yourself space to feel many, sometimes seemingly conflicting, things at once. We rarely feel only one emotion at a time. Sadness, fear, anger, hope, relief, joy… these feelings can all co-exis...

It can be very overwhelming, watching and living. Think of the absoluteness of your fingers the sturdiness of arbors. To look past the emptiness right in front of your eyes. To stare at something beau...

Cross your arms as if you are giving yourself a hug, gently tap your shoulders with your hands until you start to feel a little bit calmer....