A stranger told us we looked “too happy” to be grieving our son, and that offhand comment cracked open a much bigger conversation: who decides what grief should look like, and why do we treat joy as betrayal after loss? We open the door to our real process—private tears, unexpected waves, quiet days, and the slow return to things that make us feel alive. We talk about parenting four kids while holding absence, choosing fewer commitments to protect our energy, then carefully rebuilding a life...
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A stranger told us we looked “too happy” to be grieving our son, and that offhand comment cracked open a much bigger conversation: who decides what grief should look like, and why do we treat joy as betrayal after loss? We open the door to our real process—private tears, unexpected waves, quiet days, and the slow return to things that make us feel alive. We talk about parenting four kids while holding absence, choosing fewer commitments to protect our energy, then carefully rebuilding a life...
Beyond the Masks: How Communal Living Changed Our Family
Jessyl and Alex Podcast
54 minutes
5 months ago
Beyond the Masks: How Communal Living Changed Our Family
Sometimes the most profound transformations happen when we slow down and settle into community. After months of rapid travel through Italy's Via Francigena, our family landed in Portugal's Algarve region for what became a two-month immersion in communal living that would reshape our approach to family life. The adjustment wasn't without challenges. Our children, suddenly surrounded by friends who spoke their language, resisted leaving the property to explore. Rather than forcing our travel a...
Jessyl and Alex Podcast
A stranger told us we looked “too happy” to be grieving our son, and that offhand comment cracked open a much bigger conversation: who decides what grief should look like, and why do we treat joy as betrayal after loss? We open the door to our real process—private tears, unexpected waves, quiet days, and the slow return to things that make us feel alive. We talk about parenting four kids while holding absence, choosing fewer commitments to protect our energy, then carefully rebuilding a life...