Hi, I’m Leilani, AKA “Trudie’s daughter.” I lost my mom unexpectedly in 2025, and grief has been devastating, lonely, and occasionally rude enough to show up while making dinner or on a car ride. Along with the flowers, grief books, unanswered phone calls, and hugs that lasted a beat too long, there have also been perfectly timed texts, kindness, and little reminders that felt divine.
What has helped most is the love of her friends, and returning to crafting. The same thing I did with my mom as a child now helps me sort through what she left behind and justify keeping things no one else would save. "That hideous brooch has potential." And maybe that’s grief too- taking the broken, unfinished, or impossible to place… and slowly reshaping it into something meaningful. So if you need community, laughter, perspective, or simply proof that healing can be messy and happen beside a glue gun pull up a chair.
Sometimes healing is sitting amongst a pile of glitter and saying, “Good Grief, Trudie.”