Welcome to the commune podcast. My name is Jeff Krasnow. Okay, so today's episode takes a little left turn.

I'm going to read an essay that I recently wrote called My Dad's Feet.

It's about spending the last days of my father's life with him in hospice.

But before I read it, I just want to express my profound gratitude,

as so many of you reached out after my dad passed, emails and messages and stories

of your own experiences with loss. And it just really meant a lot to me more than I can truly

articulate here. There's something about grief that can feel awfully isolating.

But what I've been reminded of over the past couple of weeks is that grief is actually incredibly communal.

And people showed up with their own stories, their own pain, their own memories.

And in that there is a subdued healing. Now one thing that's also become

very clear to me is that grief is not linear. It does not move in five clean stages. It comes

in waves, and sometimes it's heavy, and sometimes it's rec receding and sometimes it just completely surprises you.

I've also come to feel that the depth of grief is really just a reflection of the depth of love,

that they're quite proportional and not separate experiences. And yes, there's probably a way to avoid grief,

but that would probably mean avoiding love.

And that's certainly not a trade I'm willing to make,

or I think anyone would consciously make.

So if you've written to me already, thank you.

And if you feel called to share

your own experience, their own story of loss or repair, you can reach out to me directly at

Jeff K. at one commune.com. I read all of those messages, and they really matter. So over the past

week, my family gathered in Southern Florida

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