As October becomes November, All Hallows' Eve, a k a Halloween, followed by the Feast of All Saints and then All Souls' Day, remind us of those who have gone on before us. It's a solemn time, but as the new series Grace in Grief: Hope After Loss shows, there are ways through the grieving process.
Hearing the Stories of the Grieving
Premiering Tuesday, Oct. 29 on Family Theater Productions' YouTube channel, the seven-part series follows people dealing with losses of different kinds, whether a sibling, a parent, or even a child.
Running between 10 and 15 minutes, the episodes will roll out weekly. Click here for the website, and here for the YouTube playlist.
FTP's Jay Cooney is producer on the project, filmed with the cooperation with a bereavement ministry at St. Monica Catholic Community in Santa Monica, California.
"Hearing everyone's stories," he says, "while working on the Grief series has been enlightening. I have learned a lot about the process of mourning and how people are able to transform their pain into hope and healing.
"Everyone grieves differently, and we all grieve each person in our life differently, which was very evident in the stories that we got in our interviews."
Meeting Those Who Are There to Help
The stories of those left behind are interspersed with commentary from experts helping them through the process.
Among these are Christine Gerety, St. Monica's Director of Spiritual Care & Engagement, and Paula Staab Polk, a registered nurse and funeral director.
Polk is also an end-of-life doula, a trained professional who provides support, information, and assistance in preparation for those nearing the end of their lives, in cooperation with a healthcare team.
"I wasn't familiar with doulas before this film," says Cooney. "They're there to help out with the family, and they're also there to help the family to fulfill the wishes of that person."
Asked how he structured the episodes, Cooney explains, "Initially, our plan was to structure it thematically, but as we got into the editing process, we decided to create an arc, based on a more emotional perspective.
"Since the testimony of each person was so powerful, we decided to present the story of their lost loved one, and then for the experts to reflect on that form of grief per episode."
Finding Community After Loss
As to what he would like people to take away from the series, Cooney says, "I hope that people who see this, that are going through their own grief, feel that they're not alone, and that there is hope out there.
"There are groups, there are communities, that they can go to for help. Particularly, the Church is there for them in times of grief, whether it be a funeral or a bereavement ministry."
It's sometimes hard to know what to say to a person grieving a loss, but Cooney has a suggestion, based on what he heard from the interviewees.
"One of the common things I head that was helpful," he says, "is when people simply ask the person if they needed something, and more helpful if that was a specific thing.
"People also want to hear the name of their lost loved one. So, talking about that person or listening to the person who's going through grief is also extremely helpful."
At an advance screening for the series at St. Monica Catholic Community on Oct. 27, Gerety remarked, "One of the things we talk about with our ministry team is that people come to us with courage, and they come to us with their stories of love.
"When you first come, you may not have words for your story yet. The love is there, but we have not put a form to it. What the ministry allows people to do is to start to open up their hearts.
"When we put words to it, and when we talk about the people we love, they stay alive in us, and we introduce them to other people.
"We have this opportunity, one-on-one, to be able to help start to heal the heart of the world."
Offering a Place on YouTube to Have the Hard Conversations
While death is a difficult subject, Cooney also sees a value in having a series like Grace in Grief: Hope After Loss available on YouTube.
"In this time particularly," he says, "there's a value in a series about grief, especially after we've gone through a worldwide pandemic in the last few years, not to mention natural disasters, and just natural death, which occurs regularly.
"A series like this offers people a sense that there is a community out there also grieving, and that they are not alone."
The Power of Faith
While there's value in the series for all people, it does center on a ministry at a Catholic church.
"As Catholics," says Cooney, "it's part of our calling to mourn with people who are in grief.
"Our Lord showed that He grieved over His friend Lazarus, and that was a great example to us that it's OK to be sad.
"It's OK to miss somebody who has died, and that, with our faith, we have hope that there is life after death, and the possibility of being with our loved one again in the future."
Image: Family Theater Productions
Kate O’Hare, a longtime entertainment journalist, is Social Media Content Manager and Blog Editor at Family Theater Productions.
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