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TCF NEWS Autumn 2020 | Issue No 104 In This Issue A newsletter for supporters of The Compassionate Friends In early August, an audience of 170 joined via their computers, laptops or smart phones to listen to Dr SangeetaMahajan’s honest, moving and hope-filled talk offering us her personal perspectives on the importance, possibility and ways of finding meaning after deep loss. Bereaved mother of Jess and Compassionate Friends Grief Companion Coordinator, Shirley Gower, offers her own personal reflections on this online event. “There were so many beautiful thoughts in Sangeeta’s presentation, that I would recommend you seek out the video recording and let them all wash over you. The reactions from the watching audience were coming in waves as each person responded individually to an image or thought that resonated with them personally. Sangeeta talked of saying yes to life, in defiance of what that life has thrown at you. Like a shoot growing from a felled tree, it is in our nature to reach for the sun and the light. There are so many lessons to be learnt from nature. We can try to catch a butterfly, only to have it fly away. Yet if we just stand still, and focus on something else that makes us happy, the butterfly will come and land on our shoulder. I loved the idea that, while sunflowers turn to follow the sun, in its absence they turn to face each other. What a wonderful reminder of the essence of The Compassionate Friends and the way we reach out to other bereaved parents, when it feels like our light has gone out. It is difficult to embrace the possibility that some of our best days are yet to come. Yet the suggestion that our children are our spiritual guides, rang true for many of us. Whenever I am feeling overwhelmed by my grief, I think `what would Jess say?’ Immediately I feel more grounded and reassured. If we can fight on for anybody in this life, we can fight on for our children. Finding Meaning After Loss COVER STORY: Finding Meaning After Loss Pg 3 Online Group Training Pg 4 Specialist Online Groups Success Pg 5 Volunteer Focus Pg 8 In Memoriam Robert Treadgold Pg 10 Fundraising Round Up Pg 11 Trustee Election 2020 “ The talk was so kind & resonated so well with my own thoughts that it helped me feel that maybe I am on a journey that will be ok eventually. Today I was able to get up with just a bit more lightness ”. E, TCF member