Life Transitions
Life Transitions
The “Other” is not just about the differences we face with other people. We are always coming face-to-face with the Other of change, loss, new, and unknown. When a loved one dies or divorce becomes reality and we are now living in anOther world, one without that person by our side. When we enter into a new marriage and are adjusting to living life as a couple. When we welcome a new child into the world, retire or lose a job, move, or just realize everything around us seems to be unfamiliar…all of these are times for bridge-building: from life as we knew it to life as it is or life as we hope it can be.
Too often, we face these transitions of life in silence or without acknowledging the Other we are encountering. Bridge-building in these cases involves at least two activities:
- Meaningful Rituals: these help us to acknowledge, mark, and imagine within times of transition. Done with intention and art, this is what WEDDINGS and FUNERALS can be, along with other new or refurbished rituals to fit your life transition.
- Bridge Conversations: these help us to process the grief, joy, anxiety, and fear involved in life transitions. And as we do so, they help us to access our imagination and creativity as we embody new realities, and more importantly, new ways of living in the world.
Learning Tools
Life transitions are diverse and might draw on countless different resources depending on the transition in question. Here is a list of just some of those transitions I would love to help you bridge…
- Marriage: I am an ordained and licensed minister who will guide you as a wedding service planner and officiant as well as a premarital counselor. (See “Relationships” page for relevant resources.)
- Loss and Funerals: I will help you craft personal and meaningful funerals, memorial services, and “celebrations of life,” as well as walk with you through the process of mourning and transition.
- Parenting: becoming a parent for the first or 12th time can be a time of joy and overwhelm, even loss of lifestyle. I can help you build bridges with these new realities as well as your partner and “village.”
- Retirement, Empty Nest, Divorce, Move, New Job, Job Loss, Occupational Discernment, etc.
