Chaplain and spiritual counselor Andrea Raynor has written The Alphabet of Grief, Words to Help in Time of Sorrow (155.9).

It consists of brief reflections on dealing with grief under each letter of the alphabet. I wondered what she would do with the letter “Q”. She uses “quilt,” and begins with a moving description of women from Rye, NY who traveled to Sandy Hook after the shooting with a number of gifts and activities for any mother in the town, such as nature walks, a massage therapist, quiet reflection, and yoga. One activity was making a quilt. The women from Rye had created the framework and cut out 26 stars, which could be stitched onto it by any woman who chose to work on it.

She writes: “The image of these women, many of whom had suffered terrible loss, working and remembering together and creating something beautiful was powerful… Maybe the focus needed to sew offered momentary relief from what the stars represented.”

Carol Jensen, Church Librarian