19 Comments
User's avatar
The Complex Now's avatar

Your analysis of grief touches on the collapse of the 'social imaginary'. We are moving from the narcissism of infinite growth, described so well by Christopher Lasch, to the harsh friction of biophysical limits. Grief, then, becomes the only honest gateway to a post-narcissistic maturity, where we finally accept that we are part of a fragile, finite system.

George Tsakraklides's avatar

Yes. That thing!👏🏽✌🏽💀🌱

Greg Jahn's avatar

I was just in the garden burying leftover onion sets deep in some empty spaces for green onions. My love came out to inform me of yet another loss of yet another dear friend. So I watered the bulbs with my tears. I came inside and read your words to discover and welcome even more tears. Opening to any grief seems to pull me into feeling so much loss in general. Thank you, George. 🙏🏻

greer (tree woman)'s avatar

yes...

As Stephen Jenkinson once said, in a quote that changed my life:

"we do not need hope to proceed, we need grief to proceed".

everything I now do circles around grief and griefing...

grief will always bring you to joy — for we only grieve for what we love.

~

>griefing<

.

grief returns us to love

.

it is a message from love

remembering that which is now gone

.

grief tells us what we love

.

— for we only grieve for that which we love

like coming back

to the breath in meditation

.

grief is the coming back

coming back

coming back

.

to the pulse of the love

that runs through each of us

.

our love the reason for our grief

.

grief is the act

of remembering

that all of life

flows through us

.

of remembering

that we will lose what we love

.

grief asks

that we renegotiate

our relationship

to that which is now lost

.

grief knows

that how

our love

lives in us

must change

.

grief knows

love is never lost

.

— grief is love on a different part of love’s timeline

.

(gt) March 2026

Rebecca McFaul's avatar

Beautiful piece. I'm experiencing this emergence too. My collapse-aware community contains a trust and vitality that I don't quite feel elsewhere - and it's grounding. And so is my garden ;-).

George Tsakraklides's avatar

I want to see your garden!!! 👏🏽✌🏽💀🌱

Rebecca McFaul's avatar

I don't know how to attach a picture - ugh. But know that I'd love to share a pic of my (joy!) garden! Mostly native plants, a hugelkultur/permaculture experiment in the back with fruit trees/bushes, rather wild and unkempt.....My happy place.

Entropy Prevails's avatar

I’m still in the stage of feeling utterly alone.

Karen's avatar

This was beautifully written!

George Tsakraklides's avatar

Thank you very much Karen!

Maya Frost's avatar

Yes, exactly, George. Those of us who have allowed ourselves to grieve live with deeper gratitude and a sense of joy, delighting in small moments of wonder. I laugh more now precisely because all of it must be relished fully! And in that laughter, we return to love, again and again. ❤️

George Tsakraklides's avatar

I’m still on that journey. And your powerful talk confirmed to me that this is the right journey. Thank you Maya!

Maya Frost's avatar

I have been missing you!

Wolfgang Knorr's avatar

Η εποχή του πένθους είναι και η εποχή του θυμού.

Έχουμε ένα πρόβλημα εδώ με το δήμαρχό μας, και μου αρέσει να αγωνιστώ για αυτό τώρα και όχι άλλο για το κλίμα.

Αναρωτιέμαι, εσύ που μένεις; (Που είναι αυτός ο κήπος;)

George Tsakraklides's avatar

Νόμος Καβαλας !

Wolfgang Knorr's avatar

Ωραία! Εμείς κοντά στο Βόλο.

Gaby Raasch's avatar

Danke für diesen erneut großartigen Beitrag.