“When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” That was the conclusion of two one-hour sessions on grief during Holy Week. Amy Bunce, an Anglican Minister, who is the Spiritual Care Person at Samaritan Place, facilitated the sessions for the Sisters at St. Angela Merici Residence and any of the Sisters from the city who wanted to join them.

The group gathered around a center piece that held an old afghan, a walker, a cane and pictures of the six Sisters that have died in the last ten months, as well as of the buildings we have sold in the last few years. As Amy asked about each picture, people shared what they missed about the person or the place.

Amy talked about how we need to grieve and how important it is to let each person grieve in their own way. She mentioned the stages of grief, but in a way that made them real and easily understood. She said that grief needs to be expressed, not just the grief one feels when somebody dies, but also losses, like physical limitations, etc.

The session ended with every person present reaming out half a lemon and stating what losses they were grieving. The lemon juice was mixed with water and sugar and then shared. (I am told it was too sour—perhaps that’s part of grief.)