It’s not unusual. You have a vacation booked, a work commitment, or family plans, and then someone dies. The funeral or memorial service is scheduled and you are unable to attend. What do you do when a loved one, friend, or colleague dies and you can’t change your plans? Will the family be hurt by your absence? Do you contact the family ahead of time to explain? Or, do you miss the funeral rituals and not mention it at all?



There are times when it is absolutely unavoidable…

In the weeks and months that follow a death, when real grieving takes place, many bereaved report that they feel all alone. The calls and visits have stopped and the friends that gathered around them in the days following the death are nowhere in sight. It’s very common for the bereaved to feel as if their friends have abandoned them when they need them most.



So what can you do if you have lost a loved one and feel utterly disappointed in your friends?



The sad…