Sorry for your loss. So, how did he die?

Ask a widow/er, any widow, if they have heard this or a similar phrase. Chances are, they have.
Chances are even greater that they will continue to hear this phrase.
Chances are, it’s upsetting for them to hear.

Sadly, though, this is one of the things that goes along with loss, so all of us inhabiting this planet at this moment in time, WILL hear this, or maybe even say it, many many times before our own time is up.

You never realize how much it stings though, until it is regarding the death of someone you are very close to, and this instance I am speaking of widowhood. The same core message can be applied, as I mentioned, to just about any loss, however.

So listen up. Y’all about to get a lesson in Death Etiquette.

Deathiquette?

Let us continue.

Although I have been very up front right from the beginning, as to how my husband left the land of the living (Suicide), not everyone knows, and I still get asked “how did he die?” As a Suicide Widow, I have come to understand that we can be a very blunt group of people. If I take a short breath, clear my throat and collect myself, I can usually stammer out “he ended his own life” or something to that effect. The asker is usually very taken aback, and absolutely sincere in their condolences, which I understand and appreciate.