Shortly after Kol's death, Kristen and I attended a support group in Saskatoon for bereaved parents called
The Compassionate Friends, and have continued going regularly since. It's been good to be able to talk with other parents who have lost children, to hear their stories of how they're coping, and what they are doing to honor and remember their children.
This coming Sunday (December 9th), the Compassionate Friends have their annual
Worldwide Candle Lighting event. At 7PM in each time zone around the world, candles are lit in memory of children who have died, and kept lit for an hour until the next time zone lights their candles. It's a "wave of light" that goes around the world for 24 hours. While we won't be joining in the Saskatoon group's get-together this year, we will be observing this at home, and we'd like to invite you to observe it in your home as well if you're able. At 7PM in your local time zone, simply light a candle and keep it lit for an hour.
We will light our candle in memory of our dear son Kolbjorn. We will light our candle in memory of my brother Eric and our nephew Dag. We will light our candle in memory of all the kids we've met or become aware of through various cancer and brain tumour support groups who have lost their battles. We will light our candle in memory of all the children who have left their earthly home far, far too soon.
