White Columns Funeral Service

Home
United States
Blacksburg, SC
White Columns Funeral Service

Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from White Columns Funeral Service, Funeral service & cemetery, 102 N Rutherford Street, Blacksburg, SC.

11/13/2025

The Long Haul Of Healing

The other day I saw a simple quote from Julian of Norwich that said, “Grief’s tough, you’ll be troubled, but you won’t be overcome.”

Wise words. But easier to say than to live by.

I’m honestly amazed at how people get through this thing. I know they do; billions have lost someone they love, but when you’re the one standing in the wreckage, it feels like no one else could possibly understand.

I don’t always talk about how hard it is, because I don’t want to scare the people who are new to this club nobody wants to join. But grief takes its sweet time. Some days it feels less like a healing process and more like an unmovable piece of furniture that plopped itself right in the middle of life and refuses to budge.

Sure, I have a lot of really good days, but then boom, the ‘down’ days hit even harder.
Then there are the times when it feels like there’s a new guest crashing my pity party: the urge to just give up. I try so hard to stay strong, to keep moving. But most of the time, I’m just so damn tired.

Here’s the thing…you can’t really outrun grief, but sometimes standing still with it feels even worse.

Distraction, retail therapy, reorganizing your sock drawer, whatever helps. Honestly, survival looks different for everyone, and there’s no shame in doing whatever gets you through the night.

After my loss I wrote in my journal every day. Here’s a sample:
--------------------------
Horrible!
How long do I have to live with this loneliness?
How do other people find the strength?
Feels like I’m just counting days until I’m done.
I cry. Again. And again. And again.
--------------------------
Everyone told me it never really goes away, and I believe them!

When it comes to grief, practice doesn’t make perfect.

I’ve always been a ‘fix it’ guy, give me a problem, and I’ll find a solution.

But grief? It doesn’t care about effort. It laughs in the face of determination.

The only thing left to do is learn to live with it…to carry it like a reluctant travel companion.

Gary Sturgis – Surviving Grief

11/10/2025

11/09/2025

When Grief Shows Up In The Mailbox

Grief has this sneaky way of showing up when you least expect it.

Like when you’re just casually checking the mailbox, thinking about dinner or the usual boring stuff, and then bam!

There it is…an envelope with your loved one’s name on it.

Suddenly, the ordinary chore of getting mail turns into a moment full of heartache.

You know how it goes, you’re sorting through bills and junk mail, and there it is, that familiar name staring back at you. Maybe it’s a credit card offer, a magazine subscription, or a charity asking for donations.

And just like that, grief jumps right into your day, making you stop and remember that they’re really gone.

But I think there’s also something strangely comforting about it, like a little reminder that they’re still part of the world in a weird and unexpected way.

Sometimes I actually laugh and think, “Wow, even after all this time, you’re still getting pre-approved for stuff I can’t even get approved for!”

Here’s the thing…there are days when I actually keep those envelopes. Because it’s almost like little pieces of our story together still coming in our mailbox.

Other days, when I get something addressed to “the Estate of” telling me I owe taxes on an “Estate” that never existed, I get really angry and rip them up dramatically like I’m in a soap opera.

Either way, those random pieces of mail remind me how grief isn’t neat or tidy.

It’s hard, and it’s messy, and it shows up in the mundane moments, in the regular routines, and yeah, even in my mailbox.

Sometimes I think grief just wants to remind us that love still lingers somewhere between the cracks of everyday life.

It sneaks into ordinary places…and then catches us off guard.

Gary Sturgis – Surviving Grief