Grief and pain

The pain has hit. Today was the first day I did not think to myself, ‘I can’t believe she is gone.’ Now that the buffer of shock has dissipated, the pain can be felt, as if the body was waiting for the mind to be ready to handle it. Just. Grief feels...

Quantum physics and the soul

Today I woke up sick with a cold. It is as if my body, upon hearing me think about starting back to work today, had other, more realistic ideas. I am watching comfort DVDs and eating the chocolate which came courtesy of Julie Lovell. It feels surreal, using the old...

Religion and death

It is at times of death that religion has its greatest potency. It had been a long time since I had been to mass. As I listened to the liturgy during my sister’s farewell, I could hear the rhythms of the service in a way I had not as a regular attendee. I heard...

Grief and Joe Hockey

Grief is like the ocean. It comes in waves – some seem angry, some wash ashore with peace in mind, some seem to be trying to return to the centre of the world as if they could reverse the tide and tug of the moon above. I miss my sister. It might seem strange to...

Farewell to Ally

Eulogy, 28-7-2015 Although I write words for a living, I don’t have the words to describe how I feel about my sister. I’ll try my best. I loved her and she was a part of me, and she always will be. Ally was there from my very first days, and she decided to be the best...

Blood on Tony Abbott’s hands

Maybe not yet. But calling the tragic events of Sydney yesterday “politically-motivated violence” is like asking people to start racial riots. This was an act of a crazy guy. A nut job. A sociopath with a criminal history. Calling this...