Clover Stroud: The Rituals of Grief

Clover Stroud: The Rituals of Grief

So many of us have experienced a before… and an after.

My friend, the lovely writer Clover Stroud, had her before and after at a young age. When she was 16, her mom was in a horse-riding accident and suffered a serious brain injury that left her severely disabled until she died… 22 years later. The suddenness of that accident layered with the ongoingness of that level of caregiving bonded Clover and her big sister, Nell in remarkable ways. Then, Nell unexpectedly died.

The grief of losing her sister is captured in Clover’s beautiful book, The Red of My Blood—a book that captures the visceral feelings of grief. The pain. The beauty. The staying wide awake to the life that’s in front of us despite it all. The “how do I go on parenting with all this grief?” The “give me a sign” feeling we crave when our loved ones are gone.

In this conversation, Kate and Clover discuss:

  • Kids who have to grow up too fast due to tragedy and who we become because of it
  • How some people have to live in ongoing trauma or extended grief due to caregiving or chronic illness
  • The unexpected glimmers of beauty that can sustain us amid the ache of loss
  • Why we need rituals to hold us together during deep grief

Kate went to visit Clover at her farm outside of Oxford in England to talk about the things in our lives that almost destroy us but also form us in some remarkable ways too.

CW: cancer, traumatic brain injury, horse accident, death of a sibling

Watch clips from this conversation, read the full transcript, and access discussion questions by clicking here.

Follow Kate on Instagram, Facebook, or X (formerly known as Twitter)—@katecbowler.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jaksot(280)

Learning to Be Joyful, Anyway: A Big Announcement

Learning to Be Joyful, Anyway: A Big Announcement

Joy won't cure you, but it will carry you. After surviving a stage-four cancer diagnosis, Kate Bowler knew she was supposed to be grateful. Alive. Blessed. But she still ached—for more connection, mor...

14 Loka 20256min

For Those Who Feel It All with Dr. Ellen Vora

For Those Who Feel It All with Dr. Ellen Vora

Everywhere you turn, there’s something to worry about. And sometimes that buzzing hum of anxiety is trying to tell us something important—about our body, our heart, our world. In this episode, holisti...

7 Loka 202539min

America’s Caregiving Crisis: A Conversation with Ai-jen Poo

America’s Caregiving Crisis: A Conversation with Ai-jen Poo

What happens when love isn’t enough to hold up a broken system? Ai-jen Poo—award-winning organizer and executive director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance—joins Kate Bowler to talk about care...

30 Syys 202540min

Jen Hatmaker on Divorce, Deconstruction, and Rebuilding from Scratch

Jen Hatmaker on Divorce, Deconstruction, and Rebuilding from Scratch

What happens when the life you were supposed to have… disappears? Jen Hatmaker joins Kate Bowler for a conversation about faith, divorce, and the slow art of healing. After the collapse of her marriag...

23 Syys 202542min

Am I Ruining My Kid? A Conversation with Dr. Becky Kennedy

Am I Ruining My Kid? A Conversation with Dr. Becky Kennedy

There are no training manuals for this. Just a child staring up at you with cartoon eyes and an inner monologue that asks: Am I doing this right? Am I ruining them? Kate sits down with Dr. Becky Kenne...

16 Syys 202544min

When Caregiving Becomes Codependency: A Conversation with Elizabeth Gilbert

When Caregiving Becomes Codependency: A Conversation with Elizabeth Gilbert

When someone you love is in pain—whether they’re sick, addicted, or falling apart—you show up. Again and again and again. You make the calls. You hold the line. You carry what you can. But what happen...

9 Syys 202548min

What Makes Life Worth Living? Atul Gawande on Mortality, Medicine, and Meaning

What Makes Life Worth Living? Atul Gawande on Mortality, Medicine, and Meaning

In this episode, Kate speaks with surgeon, writer, and public health leader Dr. Atul Gawande about the deeply human questions that surface when medicine meets its limits. What does it mean to be a goo...

2 Syys 202538min

How to Change (But Not Overnight)

How to Change (But Not Overnight)

You were supposed to be a whole new person by now. Sun-kissed and emotionally regulated. Inbox at zero. But here we are—still tired, still trying, still wondering if change is even possible. In this e...

21 Elo 202515min

Suosittua kategoriassa Yhteiskunta

olipa-kerran-otsikko
sita
siita-on-vaikea-puhua
kaksi-aitia
i-dont-like-mondays
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
uutiscast
poks
antin-palautepalvelu
rss-nikotellen
mamma-mia
kolme-kaannekohtaa
yopuolen-tarinoita-2
aikalisa
rss-murhan-anatomia
meidan-pitais-puhua
rss-palmujen-varjoissa
rss-haudattu
naakkavalta
mystista