No year goes by without changes. This one was no exception. Much changed. Some things remained the same. I watched the Grandsons get older and stronger. Sara came through a big change. Now she's a student at Troy. We had another successful family reunion. We lost Mom in July. We missed her at the Holidays. There was a snow at Christmas for the first time in 100 years. I trained up and ran 13.2 miles earlier this year. Joe trained along at the same time and ran the Half Marathon in Seattle. David took an interest in hunting. Max has become a Star Wars fan. I don't think I did very well with last year's resolutions. This year's resolution for weight loss will be hampered by an irritated ileotibial band. Running will probably be out of the question for weeks. So much for getting up for a 30 mile run. But weight loss remains my resolution again this year. Perhaps I can discipline myself for it.
Effigies are used in grieving by providing a tangible representation of what has been lost, allowing a mourner to connect with who or what they've lost , which can help with the process of acceptance and emotional expression, particularly when the loss is sudden or traumatic; they can be used to focus grief and memories around a physical likeness, offering a sense of continued presence even in their absence