Grief in Nature and Nature in Grief

Creative Coping / Creative Coping : Patricia Cole



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For nearly seven years, What's Your Grief has run the website  “Grief in Six Words” to allow grievers to share their individual narratives surrounding loss. The platform has served as a creative outlet and safe space for people to express themselves. We have allowed the page to simply exist - for people to read and submit their stories. But we think it is time to change that. The stories shared on that page are not only well crafted but also often manage to encapsulate an entire grief journey in just six words. So it only seems right that we highlight some of these stories here on What's Your Grief from time to time.


Nature in Grief in Six Words

Nature is a wonderful muse. Whether it be the once spirited green leaves now yellowing and descending gently onto Earth, or the calming sound of waves crashing upon the shore and changing the landscape below the surface; Nature and the physical world that surrounds us have no shortage of metaphors to offer, especially when it comes to loss.

Our experience of grief is natural and often connects us to the natural phenomena occurring around us. So it is no surprise that we find nature and metaphors surrounding nature are consistent and common themes on Grief in Six Words. Below we have shared 25 stories from users incorporating the workings of nature and the complex emotions that accompany grief. Visit griefinsixwords.com to see the original posts.


Grief in Nature/Grief Metaphor in Nature: 


“All the scenery around me changed” 

“The world is so dark now” 

“Bright colored falling leaves. Miss you!”

“The World Lost All Its Color” 

“Old hollow oak, bones of tears” 

“World sparkles less without you Omar” 

“Darkness deepens, your beautiful light gone” 

“A river cries through me” 

“Boulders heavy, crushing, grinding me down” 

“Walking together in Fields of Gold” 

“But the sun will rise again”

“My heart feels like a stone”

“Murky waters, and I can’t swim”

“In the clouds I seek you”

“Like a flower you’ll grow”

“How is the sky still blue?”

“It comes in waves not hurricanes”

“My Sunshine has completely left me”

“In nature, a breath of life”

“My love weeds my griefs garden” 

“Lost at sea without an oar”

“It comes and goes in waves”

“I watch the sunrises with you”

“Floating on a sea of sadness!”

“You’re in the wind sky, air”

Six-word stories are a wonderful and efficient way to share our grief experiences without the overwhelming amount of detail. It allows grievers to be creative and take the time to think back and reflect upon their experiences, often using the physical world to provide detail and sensory information about their loss. I find it beautiful and haunting that nature can encapsulate the experience of grief and loss with ease. I encourage you to get creative and compose your Grief in 6 Words story when you are ready and with your own muses from nature. 

Share your story!

We invite you to share your experiences, questions, and resource suggestions with the WYG community in the discussion section below.

We invite you to share your experiences, questions, and resource suggestions with the WYG community in the discussion section below.

We wrote a book!

After writing online articles for What’s Your Grief
for over a decade, we finally wrote a tangible,
real-life book!

After writing online articles for What’s Your Grief for over a decade, we finally wrote a tangible, real-life book!

What’s Your Grief? Lists to Help you Through Any Loss is for people experiencing any type of loss. This book discusses some of the most common grief experiences and breaks down psychological concepts to help you understand your thoughts and emotions. It also shares useful coping tools, and helps the reader reflect on their unique relationship with grief and loss.

You can find What’s Your Grief? Lists to Help you Through Any Loss wherever you buy books:

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2 Comments on "Grief in Nature and Nature in Grief"

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  1. Yanira CM  June 30, 2023 at 7:49 pm Reply

    I was ready yesterday to pst some more in grief in six words site, and it helps me tremendously reading others six words as well. But since yesterday the site displays a 403 forbidden error.
    Can you please assist?
    Thank you!!
    Yanira CM

    • Mary Manera  July 2, 2023 at 10:38 pm Reply

      Thanks for pointing this out ~ we are working to fix it!

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