APRIL 15, 2022 WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES
39
COPING WITH DEATH
Is closure ever
possible?
We hear people talking about
“closure” as if there is a door that
can be shut a er experiencing
a tragedy in our lives, losing a loved one
or being witness to a horrifi c event such
as the terrorist attack on the World Trade
Center.
Friends might ask, “Haven’t you reached
closure yet?”
Grief cannot be forced or pushed or
closed o from our minds.
There is no magic formula for working
through grief.
The fact of the matter is that grief must
be expressed and dealt with.
We all experience and react to loss in different
ways depending on the relationship
of the deceased to us, our past experiences
with loss, and sometimes even our health
and emotional state.
Grieving for a lost loved one can take
years, sometimes a lifetime.
According to Curtis Rostad, a Certifi ed
Funeral Service Practitioner who has
been a licensed funeral director since 1973,
there is no such thing as closure.
He maintains that those who refuse to
begin the journey through grief simply
delay their own recovery.
Rostad goes on to explain why he thinks
the concept of closure is mentioned so often
in today’s culture. “It should come as
little surprise that a generation of people
brought up with minute rice, instant coffee
and microwave ovens would search for
quick relief from something we call grief,”
he says.
“We hear it from those who go to the
scene of a disaster where their family
member has died. We hear it from those
who witness the execution of the person
convicted of killing their loved one. We
hear it expressed by those who have someone
missing in war.”
In Rostad’s long experience in helping
families deal with grief, he has found that
seeking closure only produces feelings
of frustration that join the emotions of
sorrow.
There is no closure, but there is a point
where people have a great deal of acceptance,
even peace of mind, and are able to
move on to a di erent frame of mind.
It’s a frame of mind that leaves them supported
by the memories, but empowered to
continue with their lives knowing they did
all they could do with respect to the person
they lost.
Why would anyone seek closure? Why
would anyone want to close the door on
thoughts about a departed loved one?
Grief will so en in the years a er a loss,
but the door to memories should always
be open.
— Courtesy of NYS Funeral
Directors Association
TRADITION
Morton Funeral Home/
Ridgewood Chapels
continue a proud tradition of
only an independently owned
and operated funeral can
provide.
For more than a
century,
served the greater
Ridgewood area
with reverence,
respect and a
commitment to
service. In recent
years, many local
closed their doors or
sold their businesses
to national funeral providers. We stand ready to serve the community today
and in the future with competitive pricing.
professionals who have also been part of the community for decades.
We feel privileged to be of service to families who have entrusted the
care of their loved ones to Morton Funeral Home/Ridgewood Chapels.
If you have any questions please call us.
663 Grandview Ave., Ridgewood, NY 11385
(718) 366-3200
www.mortonridgewood.com
We are now Greater Ridgewood’s largest and oldest
independently-owned and operated funeral home.
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