It’s been a year and a half since Kateri passed away… that just seems all sorts of fucked up to me. It’s weird because at some points it seems like it has been that long (whatever that means)… and at other times it seems like yesterday. Actually, anytime I think about Kateri it seems like yesterday… which is hard… and the main reason why I have to try and manage my emotions much of the time. I can function in society without breaking down in the grocery store or coffee shop… but I still don’t care if I do. Although I haven’t become comfortable living my life without Kateri (I just want her back)… I have become more comfortable with my situation… and all the bullshit that comes along with it. Mourning the loss of a spouse is one of those “Big Life” experiences that happens to be somewhat complicated and I realize I am just settling into this whole grieving process… because it’s gonna be around for a while! Oh, it’s gonna change here and there… maybe it’ll even take a break once in a while… but it’s not going anywhere. I’m just learning to live with it.
Eighteen months. I don’t even really know what to say… which may come as a surprise to some people who know me!… but there is just so much involved it’s hard for me to corral all my thoughts on the subject! Soooooo, I decided to revert back to a list of thoughts that have popped in the noggin of this widower as I remember the last year and a half without the person who I expected to live the rest of my life with… my wife… my Kateri.
Widower Notes n Thoughts:
- I haven’t redecorated or changed much in the house because I realized… it’s my house… and I like how Kateri and I have filled it with things from our life together. Just because she’s gone doesn’t mean I’m starting from scratch. Yes, it’s hard to be surrounded by 20 years of life together… the relentless reminders… but it’s still 20 years of my life.
- I’m writing this in “Kateri’s Chair”. She spent a lot of “Cancer Time” in this chair… I don’t sit in it much anymore.
- The last movie I went to was Star Wars Something (I think The Last Jedi..?)… on Christmas of 2017. It was in Idaho… Kateri was in Vermont… and it was 6 days after we found out she had melanoma in her brain.
- Kateri’s and my first piece of furniture… a stool we bought in 2001 from a store called FolkHeart in Bristol when we were living in a studio above a garage… attached to a big ass empty house in Monkton… is starting to unravel.
- A positive in this shitty experience… I.. love… to… hit… SNOOZE! Really, I do… I’ve mentioned it before. It simply was not an option with Kateri… mostly if I had to get up before her. She was not a morning person! I mean, she liked the morning time once she got up, but she wasn’t getting up until the last possible minute. Of course, it was also because she had never been a good sleeper… and now I’m thinking about how I miss hearing her sleep……… fuck.
- I bought an amp for my guitar yesterday… it makes me happy. That’s about all on that…. I just needed to get back to a happier place!
- The constant feeling of being behind gets old… that probably sounds obvious.
- In the 18 months since Kateri died I’ve basically gone from crushing pain in the beginning… to just a dull, foggy, muted existence most of the time. I wanna say that that sounds worse than it is… but it’s pretty accurate. Yup, still have times of fun n shit, but losing Kateri….
- I totally need to go through my freezer… and cupboards… and chest freezer… yum.
- My house was 68 degrees this morning! (that’s a good thing)
- I’m pretty happy with the new stove and it feels good knowing Kateri would be happy with it, as well. Now… all I need to do is take 2″ off of three and a half cords of wood. Helloooo CHOP SAW!! (ya, ya… “miter saw”… but “CHOP” is more fun)
- The things I’ve used to help me get through… to provide comfort… the things I’ve come to rely on are my friends and family, my job/profession/and co-workers, music, and my home. It’s mostly been the schoolhouse as of late… it’s just cozy.
- I still wear my wedding ring. Will probably test the waters of taking it off soon… but I’ve been saying that for a while now! Sheesh, it’s odd just thinking about not having the weight on that hand!… and I play with it a lot!
- So I just wrote how I play with it a lot… (never mind the sexual innuendoes some childish people may be snickering about)… and then I looked at my ring. I felt it, spun it around my finger, moved it up past the first knuckle as I always do (just because it feels good to let the skin beneath feel some air), and thought about everything that went into our wedding rings… what they are. Our wedding rings have significance, meaning…. weight. Although I miss being able to say “My wife” or Kateri calling me “Her husband”… I’m glad we played the parts the way we did… it makes me feel good.
- Simply… which, come to find out isn’t so simple… I’m sometimes just tired of being a “widower” and dealing with everything that comes along with it. At 18 months… a year and a half without my wife… I feel I’m doing… ok. Sometimes I think about all of the things I should or want to do… and then literally say to myself, “Just get through today.” I actually said that at the grocery store this evening, which is why I’m writing it down now! Sometimes, that’s good enough for me. At other times, I guess I get tired of “just getting through the day”… and it’s a good kick in the butt to get something done… like making logs two inches shorter!
- Just to put it out there… I think at 18 months I’m gonna start writing about some of the more uplifting and fun things happening in my life in between the piles of poop. I mean, it’s about balance right…?! (yes, I feel as though the one big pile of poop has been divided up into smaller piles of poop… but they’re all still poop.)
The End
ps… it wasn’t the end because I wanted to say that I hope you all have a nice evening. Maybe get a fire going, eat a chicken pot pie, throw in a movie, relax a bit in comfy clothes and realize that there are quite a few pretty darn good things in this world. Ummm… unless you don’t have any of those options… then, I guess you’re on your own… but I hope you still have a nice evening with the pretty darn good things in your world!
10 thoughts on “Widower Day… 18 months.”
lssattitudeofgratitude
The piles of poop spread further apart and making your way between them gets a little easier. You will still step on them, no way around that but it changes with time.
There are indeed lots of good things to be grateful for. I was able to meet Maggie in person and hug her. I am appreciating the 90 degree weather here at home. I am going to enjoy a small scoop of ice cream before drifting off to sleep.
You are doing great.
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Darren Lidstrom
I love that you gave Maggie a hug!
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Maggie
Here it was meatloaf, baked potatoes and canned peas for supper. The leaves are finally starting to turn here in North Carolina.
I look forward to reading about all the phases of your life. Every step, every day, every emotion… it is all part of the journey.
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Wanda Luthman
Hi fellow widow-er,
I lost my husband 5 months ago. Sometime in September, I felt less sad. That felt good. I have re-decorated. I couldn’t sleep in “our” bed, just couldn’t do it. I was sleeping on the couch until it was hurting my hip. I decided to buy a new bed (smaller, I got a queen instead of our king) and new sheets and bedspread. The beautiful thing is that my husband had been in the process of re-painting the bedrooms all in the same color. He had gotten our daughter’s bedroom and my office done but not ours. He had the paint though. So, I re-painted my bedroom and bathroom all that color with that can of paint. It felt good having a new look in the bedroom and that it was in the color that he had chosen. My bedrooms is now an oasis of peace for me. And I got rid of the trundle bed in my office and re-arranged my desk so it looks out the french doors over the garden we had planted while he was sick. It’s a great place for me to write (I’m an author) and feel inspired now. It’s good that you are finding some solace and happiness in the midst of the pain. I find meditating and reading scripture that speaks to my pain really helps me to find healing. Hang in there! I hear it gets better.
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Darren Lidstrom
Hola Wanda!… fellow widowed person.
First, sorry for the pile of poop plopped on ya. Second, I love that you have a desk that looks out French doors over your garden… I dig it. Third (since I guess I’m numbering everything), Congrats on the bedroom! Ya, I just recently painted mine, hung some pictures, rearranged, and it feels wonderful! I haven’t really done anything else new around the house, it seemed to be a bit too much, but I wanted to make my bedroom sorta… mine… from the beginning. I moved Kateri’s clothes to the other bedroom four days or so after she died and brought mine in… since I kept mine in another room due to space issues. I wanted to start my day… and end my day… in my own space in this new life. No new dressers or anything, and our bed was really HER bed… literally… she owned it before we knew each other… but I don’t have any problem sleeping in it! I actually find comfort in it… a closeness to her… kinda… sorta. I just like the look and history of “my” bed.
I’m glad you have found some healing! And I hope you continue to, as well! And yes… it does get better!… or at least changes, evolves, has less of a sucker punch feeling to it all the time! Take care of yourself and thanks for stopping by!
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Wanda Luthman
Yes, I’m the same. The rest of the house stayed the same for me as well. I cleaned out clothes a month after (while I was still sleeping on the sofa) so that the bedroom and closet would be “my” space as well. Although I have a few special items still in my closet of his. I still have one shelf of his stuff in our bathroom closet of shelves. I cleaned out his dresser so my stuff could go in except his top drawer which had special, personal items of his in it. I haven’t been able to look in there yet. And his bedside table—I haven’t gone through that either. But took down pictures and bought different ones. I decorated in butterflies as a symbol of new life after death. I love it! My bedroom brings me happiness and peace which I desperately needed after he passed.
And you don’t have to apologize for the poop! It’s expected when we lose someone. It’s better to express it and share it.
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Darren Lidstrom
I totally agree on sharing it!… it helps!
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Wanda Luthman
Indeed it does! Did you go through a grief group or anything? I’m just finishing a 13 week griefshare grief group program and it has been very helpful. And I’m in a widow/widower group on Facebook where we share with each other our struggles and triumphs as well.
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Darren Lidstrom
Nope… haven’t gone to any groups/counseling… haven’t read any books… don’t take any medication (besides weed). I kinda wanted to see how I would do on my own… make it up as I go! I figured, Kateri dealt with the cards she was handed in a way that she wanted to deal with it… I’m gonna sorta do the same! Basically, take a step and if it’s good… take another. If not… take a step back and try something else! However, I do belong to a widow/widowers FB group and a just widowers FB group. I don’t do much on either… less on the just widowers site… but they have both been beneficial and the only place I feel people understand what it is I’m going through! I mainly try to share the positives in this life… there’s plenty of the sad stuff out there! Gotta recognize the triumphs!
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Wanda Luthman
Well, sounds like you’re figuring it out just fine. The Facebook group is a safe place to share and people do really understand. I don’t do much on there. Most often I just read other people’s posts and feel comforted to know others are feeling the same way. There are positive posts too. One that was really inspiring was a woman who learned to do some home remodeling—like laying floors and baseboards and changing out light fixtures and sinks! It made me engage with learning how to put up and take down my own Hurricane shutters. I felt so empowered!
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