Day 19 Fish Fry and Grief
Fried Fish. Baked Fish. Shrimp. Yum! It’s Friday during Lent and for many families that means fish. When I was growing up, only my dad was Catholic, but my mom made sure our Fridays had fish (or at least stayed away from what he wasn’t supposed to eat). I like most fish, so that was fine with me.
A few years ago they found a church in their area that had a fish fry. My mom was all over that. No more figuring out what kind of fish to make – she just bought what they had. Smart mom – she didn’t have to cook and he got his fish.
My husband and I heard about a fish fry in the area, and since we both like fish a lot, we decided to try some. And wow, is it good! Unfortunately, it’s also bad, as each week I’m reminded that both parents are gone, and I can’t share this yummy food with them.
Have you heard of the box and the ball and the pain/grief button? For anyone who has experienced grief, it’s worth a look. (I found it in multiple places – It’s in a twitter feed/facebook post by Lauren Herschel.) The short version is that there is a box with a pain/grief button on one side and a ball inside the box. When you first have a loss, you can’t move the box without the ball hitting the pain button. Over time, the ball shrinks, but since it never completely disappears the ball is still able to hit the pain button. Often it seems to happen randomly…
…like when I smell fried fish.
#SOLSC21
Teachers Write 
Yes it is very random when the grief surfaces. I grew up eating fish EVERY Friday, not just during Lent.
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Oh, the mixed emotions in this one! Grief is hard, but fish fries are so good!
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What a lovely combination of joy and grief, made so personal. I hope the fish was delicious and the grief was wrapped in joyful memories, too.
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It was, and it is. Grief is hard, but also can be smiles with tears.
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I enjoyed the content of this slice, but I have to compliment you on the structure and craft you used to tell your story. It spread smoothly like you would spread jam on the peanut butter. I really liked the economy of your words to talk about something so deep and personal.
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Thank you! No matter how I try, I seem to write in the same tone. My sister is a gifted writer, and I’ve always considered myself much less so. Through this month I’ve gotten some compliments that makes me “re-see” myself as a writer.
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