There is little doubt that we live in a culture of paradoxes, especially when it comes to raising children. Parents are apt at letting their children know when it is time to go to bed or to clear their rooms – the practical, trivial things, – but seem to be at a loss when discussing those matters which will mold their children into veritable human beings. Among the many concepts which inhabit the proverbial list of aversive topics is that of death. For all its emotional extravagance, Western society remains largely affixed to death-denying, in which grief suppression and avoidance to discussions about death, particularly with children, are a common practise. Thus, when tragedy strikes, it is the children who must deal with an emotion still largely foreign to them, alone.

full thoughts at my blog