Grief can be such an isolating experience. I talk to so many people who feel ostracized from their social networks after the death of a loved one. It is challenging to navigate relationships with a heavy burden of sorrow, and many bereaved people feel abandoned by those they considered close friends. They find that their friends simply don’t know what to do or say in the face of loss, and they quietly slip out the door.
What if you could find a place in your grief where you belonged? Where you felt truly heard and loved and accepted? What if you could become a card-carrying member of “Club Sorrow”? Today’s poem explores this idea.
I love that Maude Hutchin’s club of sorrow encircles the earth. Rather than walk alone, those who grieve stand hand and hand with one another. What a poignant picture of the universality of grief and the companionship to be found inside it. Whatever you face today, I hope you find a hand to hold, a friend to walk with you through grief. I’m honored that you walk with me in mine.
Club Sorrow
Lots of people are sad
Let’s all cry
And make a noise
As deafening as the sea
Each will bring a member in
And a member each another
And end to end
We’ll encircle the earth
And let none by who laughs
Aie Aie
A smile we may permit
But circumspect
We cannot be responsible
For loss by theft or fire
Our movements will suggest our sorrow
We’ll carry a furled flag
We’ll learn the chant of widows
And the wail of younger pain
And secret grief we also will admit
Provided the bearer writes in a book
The cause and content of his woe
Provided the girl reveals
Something
As proof of her seduction
To the sad
Just…thank you. This is not a club I would have ever joined voluntarily. I do, however, belong to this club of unwilling participants. There is a bond unknown to those that have not been forced to join. Knowing that you are walking this lonely path with me is comforting beyond measure. Again, thank you.