When my husband died suddenly, I found myself wading through the uncharted waters of deep grief and trying to navigate it for my kids as well.
We spent a lot of time talking to help process our emotions and the cataclysmic change. We talked in the car, at the dinner table, in our morning Bible time, at bedtime.
Our world had completely upended and my kids were filled with questions. My youngest two would often ask these questions at the most inopportune times and often, asked them over and over. Grief is too much for a young child to carry, and asking questions helps them process grief bit by bit.
My teens didn’t ask questions, but I knew they had them. So we’d sit together and talk, me bringing up answers to questions I knew were swirling in their thoughts.
We can’t do the hard work of grief for our children, but we can shepherd them through with hugs and tears, giving stability in a world that’s changed, and listening when they open up.
Their questions need honesty and gentleness, to help them make sense of grief and death. Here are some of the hard questions children ask in grief.
