The Goodbye and the Goldfish

Lena Fairwood

A goldfish floats to the top of the bowl, or a grandparent's chair sits empty, and suddenly a child needs words you were never taught to say. This is steady guidance for that first encounter with loss: how to explain death without frightening euphemisms, what questions to expect at bedtime, how grief shows up as anger or silence, and small rituals that give a child somewhere to put their sadness. Gentle, clear, and grounded in the moment at hand.