In this episode, I speak with the wonderful Ari Jalomo, a student at Kenyan College currently studying abroad in Spain. Ari and I met at Comfort Zone Camp this past summer, where she was participating in the young adults group and I was volunteering as the group's "mentor." I was so impressed by Ari, as a great example of someone who has clearly benefited from going to CZC over many years and having the opportunity to talk about her loss multiple times. Ari's father died by homicide when she was seven years old, and even at a young age Ari advocated for herself and requested a camp "Big Buddy" who had experienced a similar loss. She is very clear about how she was able to process the loss of her father over many years, as she was growing up, and how it developed and changed. Ari is incredibly articulate about the resources she was given as a child, the adults who supported her, and aware of where she is in the long arc of childhood grief. I love talking to someone who understands her grief from living it and examining it over many years. As a parent, I know I would be very encouraged to have a child who is as comfortable talking about their grief as Ari.

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Special thanks to Josephine Wiggs for the song "Time Does Not Bring Relief" from her album "We Fall."

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