Tag Archives: grieving

Stronger in the Broken Places

By Robin Bates | Published: March 14, 2021

Joe Biden picked the perfect Hemingway quote for his Covid address to the nation.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged COVID-19, Ernest Hemingway, Farewell to Arms, Joe Biden | Comments closed

The Green Knight on Handling Death

By Robin Bates | Published: March 26, 2020

“Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is one of the most profound works I know for dealing with death.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged COVID19, death, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight | Comments closed

Mourning the Loss of a Son

By Robin Bates | Published: August 12, 2018

Longfellow turned to the story of Absolom to console a friend who had lost a son. “Chamber over the Gate” captures the grief in a supportive way.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged death and dying, death of a son, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow | Comments closed

Poetry: Sure Solacer of Human Cares

By Robin Bates | Published: November 12, 2016

For those trapped in gloom, Emily Bronte reminds us that the Imagination is there to provide us with solace.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged 2016 presidential election, Depression, Emily Bronte, Imagination | Comments closed

Doctor Faustus: Lessons in Grieving

By Robin Bates | Published: June 2, 2016

After watching two students turn to Marlowe’s “Doctor Faustus” as they grieved the death of parents, I have come to see the play as a powerful meditation upon how we respond to death.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Christopher Marlowe, death and dying, Doctor Faustus | Comments closed

He Doth Sit By Us and Moan

By Robin Bates | Published: August 30, 2015

Last week I was honored by my friend Jean Yeatman when she asked me to sit with her at her mother’s deathbed. We talked about childhood excursions that our families took together and also about the importance of ritual in our lives. Today’s William Blake poem is for her and her brother Clay. Blake finds […]

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "On Another's Sorrow", death and dying, mourning, William Blake | Comments closed

If Beowulf Went to War with ISIS

By Robin Bates | Published: February 9, 2015

The Jordanian response to the burning alive of a Jordanian pilot reminds us that Grendel’s Mother is on the loose in the Middle East. Beowulf models how we should respond.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Beowulf, blood feuds, Grendel's mother, ISIL, ISIS, revenge killings | Comments closed