Nov 30, 2023
After Daphne's 5-year-old daughter, Lydia, was killed in a car
accident 15 years ago, Daphne struggled to find any hope. She
dreaded looking at her daughter's closed bedroom door. Her
therapist gave her a bit of advice that she still lives out all
these years later. Daphne's therapist told her to 'sprinkle a
little bit of Lydia' throughout the house so Daphne did. She put
Lydia's favorite nail polish on the counter and hung Lydia's
feather boa on her curtains. She worked to leave little bits of her
precious daughter everywhere.
Now after 15 years and a move to a new house, there are not
quite as many of Lydia's possessions around the house, but the
spirit still applies. Daphne has written a book about her grief
journey, co-authored another book, and been a contributor for a
dozen others. She has a blog called 'The Sweeter Side' on her
website, grievinggumdrops.com. Through her writing,
Daphne sprinkles a little bit of Lydia in order to bring hope and
healing to grieving parents everywhere.
Now, Daphne has a new dream. Over the years, Daphne has met
many grieving moms, especially through Compassionate Friends and
Ellie's Way. She has followed many bereaved moms (including me) on
social media and noted how many of us are working to bring little
bits of hope to grieving families. This gave Daphne an idea. What
if she asked these moms to submit their own little stories to make
a collection? This collection would tell the stories of their late
children as well as give little messages of hope - little stories
that could help to inspire other moms on their own grief
journey.
So that is exactly what Daphne is doing. She is collecting 52
stories from 52 different moms to make a book that a grieving mom
would read over a full year. Daphne still laments the fact that it
took her so long to find any hope in her grief. She wants to
provide a bit of hope each week to moms who are feeling hopeless.
It is a gift to them as well as a gift to all of us who are
contributing, because now we, too, can sprinkle a little bit of our
own children out to others in the world.
To contribute, email DaphneBGreer@gmail.com