Just a thought… Sometimes, only one person is missing, and the whole world seems depopulated. [Alphonse de Lamartine, Méditations Poétiques]

Good morning and welcome in. As you may know, if you happen to follow me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/erindavispage) or @threads.net (@erindawndavis) or even Bluesky (@erindavis.bsky.app) you likely know that I have a place where I share videos (“grief briefs” as I call them) about, well, loss.

We’ve covered quite a few different facets of grief, but I have recently done a three-part series (all around two minutes each) about this time of year and how to navigate the holidays when there’s an empty chair at the table, or space in your life, where someone you cherished once made life better.

Last week I posted the first part, and today the second is up at YouTube.com on my channel: therealerindavis.

You can go to it here, and if it resonates, please share it with others you know who may be in this place in their lives. It can even just be a sign that you’re thinking of them and know they’re missing someone terribly especially at this time of year.

There will be a third part and I’ll post it before Christmas. Please subscribe to the YouTube channel (it’s easy to do and you won’t be inundated with messages or requests; it’s also free) and you’ll get the third one as soon as it’s posted publicly. Or keep an eye out on the aforementioned Facebook page.

Thank you. Have a gentle week. We are doing so as we embark on our ninth day here in Southern California in Cathedral City. Not at all as Vatican-esque as it sounds, it’s nestled between Palm Springs and Palm Desert and is, for now, our happy place. We find them where we can. And another of mine is sharing any wisdom I might have about the language of loss, both with those familiar and unfamiliar with it. For as the old saying goes, “Joy shared is multiplied; pain shared is divided.”

Take care, and thank you.