Collected Item: “Sometimes I forget my aunt died of COVID-19.”
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Sometimes I forget my aunt died of COVID-19.
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text story
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Although my aunt was not a significant part of my life since about 2007, she was still family. During the midst of the large outbreak in the summer of 2020 my dad texted me that she was in the hospital, then was released, and then was found deceased in her home a few days later. At this time, it was hard to have a body “processed” quickly, for lack of better words, through morgues and funeral homes. Additionally, having a funeral service was not advised because of either lockdown, funeral homes limiting attendance, or these homes even not performing services. On top of that, many people would have been hesitant to attend. My dad and his siblings decided to not have a service. I have heard many other similar stories. Perhaps this became a pandemic funerary custom to some; life went on and no occasion was marked. Even though we were not super close, and I was not despondent, this would have been a way to process and mark a death for me. For others, a time to process grief.
To summarize, she died of COVID-19. I could not visit her in the hospital, and we did not have a funeral service or a burial. I feel that because of the pandemic my family did not go through the traditions and customs that help people process and accept death. I am not sure how my parents and sister feel. I have mistakenly wondered what my aunt was up to, temporarily forgetting her death. Even though we weren't the closest I would have had a memory marker achieved through tradition and grieving/funerary customs that would have given others the peace needed.
To summarize, she died of COVID-19. I could not visit her in the hospital, and we did not have a funeral service or a burial. I feel that because of the pandemic my family did not go through the traditions and customs that help people process and accept death. I am not sure how my parents and sister feel. I have mistakenly wondered what my aunt was up to, temporarily forgetting her death. Even though we weren't the closest I would have had a memory marker achieved through tradition and grieving/funerary customs that would have given others the peace needed.
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#deathways, #funeral, #death, #tradition, #HST580, #ASU
Who originally created this object? (If you created this object, such as photo, then put "self" here.)
self
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2022-03-27