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Guest Writer It’s OK Not To Be OK – Isn’t It? Sabine Horner Answers This Question For Us

June 21, 2020 Monumental Muse

We’re delighted to have an insight into this question from one of our regular guest writers Nutritional Therapist and Kundalini Yoga Instructor, Sabine Horner. Sabine is based in York. IT’S OK TO NOT BE OK – UP TO A CERTAIN POINT I cannot remember how many times I have come across this phrase since I lost my husband in August 2017. Being a member of a group of young widows and widowers, I noticed that it was used a lot when people were too exhausted or overwhelmed by grief to be able to look after themselves properly. In a way…

Guest Writer Pandemic Grief – Advice from Guest Writer Geraldine Mace

May 25, 2020 Monumental Muse

Why a Post About Pandemic Grief? This post has been written by Geraldine as a result of a special request from one of our readers, who is finding difficulty coping with the pandemic situation and lockdown. Thank you to Geraldine for responding so quickly to our request. Pandemic Grief Someone mentioned to me last week that they were feeling angry that their world, as you may imagine, has changed totally. They compared going through lockdown to going through the different stages of grief. I felt this was a very appropriate topic for this blog and here are my thoughts. As…

Feature Article Brainstorming With Claire Potter – Stockill and Son Funerals

May 12, 2020 Monumental Muse 6Comment

Sharon on Claire: Claire Potter is a married mum of three who loves travelling, self-development, to be inspiring and to be inspired and, like me, the City of York (what’s not to love?). A background in HR and Events eventually lead to her entering the funeral industry. She is the Manager of F A Stockill & Son, Funeral Directors in Scarborough. It is her passion for everything she does that enables her to uphold the Stockill family values of “Listening, Caring and Guiding” with ease. With lockdown due to Coronavirus in full flow Claire and I were unable to meet…

Feature Article Breaking the Insomnia Cycle with Sabine Horner

May 8, 2020 Monumental Muse

WHY GRIEF TURNS US INTO INSOMNIACS AND HOW WE CAN BREAK THIS CYCLE A good night’s sleep is crucial for our health. But somehow, sleep doesn’t come easy when we are bereaved. Despite a severe lack of energy, many of us turn into night owls – staying up late and dragging ourselves out of bed the next morning. And if we do manage to go to bed early, many find it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep long enough to start the next day rested and refreshed. Needless to say, disrupted sleep doesn’t help when trying to cope with…

Feature Article Desperately Seeking Baby Russell – Now Found!

May 3, 2020 Monumental Muse

***NOW FOUND***THANK YOU TO ALL THOSE WHO HELPED*** I don’t normally publish posts like this on our blog but this story has rather pulled at my heartstrings and if I can I’d like to help. At only 19 years old Rosemarie Dooks was faced with an impossible, heartbreaking choice. A holiday romance had resulted in Rosemarie falling pregnant. Having lost her beloved father at only 12 years of age Rosemarie turned to her mother for help. Her mother, a stalwart of the Church and worried what her neighbours would think told Rosemarie she would have to have an abortion and…

Feature Article “Let Me Take Your Hand…” We Present To You Kerry Aldridge

April 30, 2020 Monumental Muse 2Comment

There’s a “new kid on the block” on the funeral scene around York and she brings with her a slightly different approach. I had heard about her from another funeral director when I was looking for an end of life Doula to interview for the blog. Her name is Kerry Aldridge and she offers what is possibly the most comprehensive funeral service I’ve come across. Appropriately named “Hand in Hand Funerals”, what Kerry has created is in effect a hand holding service right through from end of life care to, if needed, bereavement support for those left behind. I was…

Feature Article “From Schoolgirl to Top Hat and Cane” – Introducing Hayley Spencer

April 25, 2020 Monumental Muse

Who would have thought that a simple two-week work placement with a local funeral director would have such a far-reaching effect for a young Hayley Richmond, from Huntington School? It left Hayley knowing exactly what she wanted to do. True to her ambition, at only 17 she secured her first admin role with Co-op Funeral Services. Within 6 months Hayley was asked if she would like to become a trainee funeral director and mortuary assistant. She has never looked back since. Darley Funerals – A Family Affair Having successfully built her career and getting’ married along the way Hayley -…

Guest Writer Bereavement During Coronavirus

April 23, 2020 Monumental Muse

Today we have a post kindly written for us by guest writer Geraldine Mace. You can learn more about the services offered by Geraldine here. When someone dies it is devastating, sometimes it has been expected, sometimes it is sudden and shocking, and it hurts. Everyone feels their grief at one hundred per cent so this blog is not about comparing whether losses experienced during the Coronavirus lockdown are worse than before, rather it is about the way Coronavirus can complicate the grieving process. Not long after lockdown started, someone I know called me worried that their relation wasn’t doing too…

Feature Article The Secret Hidden Behind The Big, Black, Wrought Iron Gates

April 20, 2020 Monumental Muse 2Comment

Venture through the, rather austere looking, huge black Victorian wrought iron gates on Cemetery Road in York, and you may be in for a surprise. You could be forgiven for thinking you had walked straight into the pages of “The Secret Garden” by Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett. Such is the hidden beauty that lies within, as the road name gives its secret away, York Cemetery. Whilst the Cemetery is administered by York Cemetery Trust with the support of the Friends of York Cemetery when it comes to Cemetery business there is one name that crops up time and again. That…

Feature Article Funeral Services – Who Cares for Those Who Care for The Dead?

April 19, 2020 Monumental Muse 26Comment

When we hear the term “key workers” most of us automatically think of those workers from the NHS, Emergency Services, Carers, Shop Keepers, Refuse Collectors, Farmers and Supermarket workers. Seldom do we hear any talk of those involved in funeral services – the people who care for the dead – given a mention. To the contrary, we hear phrases like “The Funeral Directors must be wringing their hands with glee.” Or “At least it must be good business for the Church/Cemetery – they’re never going to be out of work, are they?” Maybe it is because we as a nation…