Second Marriage Anniversary

I took this photograph two years ago today.  My son Simon married Lucie in a hospital room five days before he died after a long battle with lymphoma.  Over the years his repeated trips from Vanuatu to Sydney for treatment had put their marriage on hold but they knew they couldn’t wait any longer. 

Four months before, they were delighted to learn that IVF had been successful and Lucie was pregnant. Simon was determined to live long enough to meet his unborn baby girl but it wasn’t to be.  I didn’t share what I was going with the Blip community then but now is the right time.

It’s only in the last month that I’ve had this image printed and framed. It doesn’t make me as sad now when I look at the image. Rather I see the absolute love Simon had for Lucie, who was carrying their unborn child, Simone.  

When overseas travel becomes doable again I’ll take the framed image to Lucie for Simone to grow up seeing the love her Dad had for her Mum.

Your child dying before you is just wrong and the grief that follows is shattering.  Time doesn’t heal grief but to acknowledge, accept and live with that sadness somehow makes it easier to carry.  The emptiness can’t be filled but grief becomes compatible with enjoyment of life.  Today I’m so grateful for the gift of my granddaughter, Simone.

The extra shows my immediate family at Simon and Lucie’s marriage.

Continue to take care, stay strong and well in these troubling times.