Mourning Breaks

As wildfires continue to impact communities, we pause to lift up all those who have been affected.

We pray for the safety of families who have been displaced, the firefighters and emergency responders working tirelessly to protect our lands, and the community members supporting one another through these difficult times.

May Creator surround everyone with strength, comfort, hope, and healing. May the smoke clear, the fires be contained, and safer days come soon.

Our hearts are with every community facing these challenges.

💛 “People often ask why talking about baby loss matters. For bereaved parents, the answer is simple. We aren’t talking about a loss, we’re talking about our babies. We don’t share because we want sympathy. We share because love doesn’t end when a life does, & parenthood doesn’t end because a child dies.” 🙌🏼

Today I wanted to share one of my most treasured photographs, & with it, a few words from my heart.

People often ask why talking about baby loss matters. For bereaved parents, the answer is simple. We aren’t talking about a loss, we’re talking about our babies. We don’t share because we want sympathy. We share because love doesn’t end when a life does, & parenthood doesn’t end because a child dies.

Whether a baby was lost early or late in pregnancy, at birth, or in infancy or childhood, they are still loved. They are still part of a family.

Talking about baby loss gently breaks the silence that has surrounded this subject for far too long. It helps others understand that behind every story of loss is a story of love, & behind every bereaved parent is someone who simply wants their child to be remembered.

Grief changes you. It reshapes the way you see the world. It teaches you that life is both unimaginably fragile & unimaginably precious. It breaks your heart, yet somehow expands it, allowing it to hold both profound sorrow & extraordinary joy at the very same time.

It is only when your own heart has been broken open that you truly realise just how sacred life can be.

So, on this very ordinary Saturday, I simply wanted to share this photograph of my family with you, including the five who have run on ahead, & perhaps gently remind someone else that if you know a bereaved parent, let them know their baby is remembered. A simple word, a shared memory, or speaking a baby’s name can mean more than you will ever know.

Today, as always, I celebrate this beautiful life, because that is one of the greatest gifts my children have given me. I notice beauty more deeply. I treasure ordinary days. Yet the space they left behind will always remain, because they are my children, & I am forever their mother.

Zoe

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Added in message:

Thank you to everyone who has messaged me about this post. Your stories have been heartbreakingly sad, deeply moving, and an incredible privilege to read.

Many of you have asked why I say my babies are “running on ahead”, rather than saying they died.

I first wrote those words fourteen years ago. For me, they reflect my faith and my hope. I believe that one day I will be reunited with my babies in Heaven, so their story was never a goodbye forever. Instead, I picture them as having simply run on ahead of me, waiting for the day we are together again.

I never imagined those few simple words would resonate with so many people. Over the past decade, millions have shared them, found comfort in them, and made them part of their own story. That is something I will never take for granted.

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(This picture was created for my first book, “Saying Goodbye”. It represents my seven children, the two I have the privilege of parenting on earth, & the five who ran ahead. It remains one of the most treasured images I own. Mariposa International now create these for people to raise funds for the charity. If you want one head to: mariposastore.org)