My friends were dancing at the festival, so I went to cheer for them. Between the performances, speakers came on stage to talk about stress, loneliness and where to get help. I was planning to go and buy a snack, but one of the speakers started talking about losing a parent.
I lost my mother two years ago. I never really talked about it with anyone. Hearing someone stand in front of hundreds of students and speak about grief so calmly made me sit back down.
Afterwards I went to the SIU tent. I did not even know what to say, but the volunteer just asked how I was and let me talk. She told me grief does not have a deadline.
I have joined the peer support group at my school now. Some days we talk about serious things and some days we just laugh, and both help.
