Open Post: What's been happening in your world?

By JAMILA RIZVI

Welcome to Open Post.

For the new players, this is a weekly Mamamia tradition where we get together on Hump Day and talk about whatever we like.

There are no rules, no requirements, no pressure. You can ask for advice, share a story, lend some support or just have a scan of the comments and see what’s going on in other people’s lives.

Personally, I’ve had a pretty difficult couple of days. We lost my grandmother late last week; an event I haven’t yet felt up to writing about. Sometimes writing can be cathartic, yes, but sometimes the pain can all feel a bit too much. Writing is a really raw experience and requires you to engage and think about the subject matter in a level of depth that I’m not yet prepared for.

So for now, I’ll just say that my grandmother was a tremendous woman. A matriarch of novel-worthy proportions; the true head of a family that now sprawls out across the whole world. I’m still feeling very shaky and daunted about having to exist in a world that she is no longer a part of. And that’s what has been dominating my thoughts this week.

On a more pleasant note, I’ve been surrounded by the people I care most about and it’s been a delightful distraction from feeling sad. Who would have thought that a whole day on the couch watching The Newsroom with my boyfriend could be so good for the soul? Or that recounting high school poo and wee jokes with my late-twenties (but VERY young at heart) housemates would become an integral part of the mourning process. Or how much it meant having university friends and Mamamia colleagues offering to come to the funeral with me and lend their support.

So this week? I’ve felt very sad and very lucky all at the same time. An odd mixture to be sure.

Enough from me. What’s been happening in your world?