HeyJaredGrief Positive
I’m Karen Kelly. I’m a mother, a writer, and someone learning how to live and communicate after the death of my beloved son, Bix. Afterward, I didn’t collapse. My heart cracked open. It's been a wild ride ever since. Join me.
- Indexed issues, all indexed history
- 15
- Latest publication
- Oct 13, 2026
- Audience
- Checking…
- Earliest indexed
- Aug 11, 2026
Latest issues
I Don’t Know Where I’m Going. So What? (opens the original)
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I was traveling somewhere again, this time with a woman named Laura, who is often challenging to be around. Closed, abrasive, icy, and afraid to show any feeling that might make her vulnerable. There were other people there too. The first thing I remember is driving on top of a murky river, with a busy highway above us. People were swimming in it, and it was weirdly fascinating to watch them bob, go under, and come up again. As soon as one went under, you couldn’t see him (they seemed to be men)
Not For Nothing (opens the original)
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“Rachel came through you to do her work on earth, which includes her manner of death.”That line is from Ram Dass’s iconic and profound Letter to Rachel. I encourage every parent who has lost a child to read this letter and other writings and talks by Ram Dass on death and dying. Because Rachel died in such a horrific way, I’ll wait a minute before I tell you about it. You can take a deep breath or click away.Rachel was just 11 or 12 when she was raped, strangled, and killed along with her friend…
Go Somewhere Your Grief Has Never Been (opens the original)
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Grief can make the world feel small and insular. That’s been my experience, anyway. Sometimes I’ve needed to physically leave the landscape where I’ve been grieving to discover that I’m still capable of experiencing new things, thinking differently, meeting new people, and learning about places I’ve never been to. I’ve been on numerous retreats over the last 30 years, including a zendo on Beecher Lake in upstate New York and Kripalu in the Berkshires of Massachusetts. I’ve been to Omega and pers…
I Forgot the Day My Son Died (opens the original)
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My heart was racing. I was driving home from the dentist. The appointment had run longer than I expected because they did a little extra work after my cleaning. I had a 1:00 phone call, and I was going to be late. But I also had something else on my mind: the anniversary of my son Bix’s death. It will be four years on Friday. But I had it in my head that the anniversary was the next day, today. The date of my son’s death? I got it wrong. Something happens to our bodies with overwhelming trauma a…
I Don’t Mind What Happens (opens the original)
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Jiddu Krishnamurti, one of my newest BFFs who’s no longer around, had a famous saying: “I don’t mind what happens.”This is the core principle of freeing ourselves from clinging to how we think things ought to be instead of accepting and working with how things actually are. I write about this often on this Substack. The basic cause of all human suffering, including grief, which can, but does not have to, be a form of suffering, is clinging to how we think things ought to be instead of accepting …
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