Category: Mourning

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2020 Collected Wisdom Grief iPad Knowledge Kitchen Tapes Mourning Snippets and Vignettes Writing

Trenna’s iPad

An iPad sitting on a kitchen bench with a pen and water glass nearby
Trenna's iPad at the Kitchen Bench where she recorded "The Kitchen Tapes".

Life in 500 Words –
4 Minutes of Fame for Trenna & Greg

Note: The recordings I refer to in this piece formed The Kitchen Tapes series. It starts HERE.

Introduction

The ABC is Australia’s national media and broadcasting service. And on the ABC Radio National station on weekday mornings the Life Matters show has been running an interesting segment entitled Life in 500 Words.

I have listened to quite a few and there are some fascinating stories … Read the rest ... “Trenna’s iPad”

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2020 Carer Craig House End of Life Eulogy Grief Mofflyn Homes Mourning

Eulogy – The Movie

2 shadows on a wall
2, 23rd "Shadow Art." Helen and Trenna at an Ai WeiWei and Andy Warhol exhibition in Melbourne, 23 February 2016.

By Greg

Two-Year Anniversary

I’m publishing this post on 23 December 2022, exactly two years from when Trenna passed away.

I debated with myself whether to put anything on the site to commemorate the specific day, but then recalled an idea I have been meaning to get around to for a long time.

The Eulogies

A “Celebration of Trenna’s Life” was held on Friday 15 January 2021. I gave the main eulogy but I also asked Trenna’s sister Nancy, and … Read the rest ... “Eulogy – The Movie”

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1980s 2020 Eulogy Mourning Music

I Was Wrong – It Wasn’t That Song!

The label on a 1973 LP Record
It was track 4 on this album that I dedicated to Trenna in January 1988.

By Greg

I’m very keen for this website to be an accurate representation, or at least sample, of Trenna’s life.

So if I become aware of an error, I will try to correct it.

I discovered one recently when I was working on a soon to be published story about Trenna and my earliest days together.

I was was telling the story of how I had dedicated a song to her when I was the guest presenter on a community … Read the rest ... “I Was Wrong – It Wasn’t That Song!”

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Coping Grief Mourning

Grief – What I’ve Learnt in the First 18 Months

" Kindly gent took our pic under sweet Magnolia tree." Tokyo, 30 March 2015.

by Greg

Any Tips?

I’m a Justice of the Peace in Western Australia and I volunteer at a signing centre. People come in without an appointment and ask me to witness signatures or to certify various documents.

I’m only rostered on once a month so it isn’t particularly onerous.

The other day, a guy who was probably in his early seventies, came in to ask me to certify some documents for him. He told me straight away that his wife … Read the rest ... “Grief – What I’ve Learnt in the First 18 Months”

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1960s 1970s Craig House End of Life Eulogy Grief Mourning

Eulogy Part 3

Trenna and Helen smiling
Trenna and Helen, 5 March 2015. Taken in our kitchen with Trenna's Canon G15 camera using the self timer.

A Celebration of Trenna’s Life  –  15 January 2021

Below is the the eulogy delivered by Trenna’s friend, Helen Rice at the celebration of Trenna’s life.

Eulogy


I met Trenna in October 1967 when I moved to Craig House a hostel for Legacy children.We bonded instantly as we were the youngest at Craig House at that time. She became my closest friend very quickly, so much so that I remember not wanting to go on a visit with my mother … Read the rest ... “Eulogy Part 3”

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End of Life Heart and Lung Failure Marfan Medical Mourning Snippets and Vignettes Visually Impaired Writing

I am Stuck

Trenna on Staten Island
On Staten Island. 8 October 2013.

A Screen shot from Trenna's iPad
A screen shot from Trenna’s iPad

[Note from Greg: I don’t think for one moment that when Trenna prepared this piece on her iPad that she just added a nice picture to the top. I think the fact that she is standing on an island (Staten), with the rest of the world behind her (New York City) is entirely deliberate and relevant.]

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2020 Carer End of Life Eulogy Grief Marfan Medical Mourning

Eulogy Part 2

Trenna and Nancy Outside
"GIRLHOOD Sisters, 3 March 2015." Trenna and Nancy at a screening of GIRLHOOD at the Somerville Auditorium.

A Celebration of Trenna’s Life  –  15 January 2021

Below is the the eulogy delivered by Trenna’s oldest sister, Nancy Seckington-Baker at the celebration of Trenna’s life.

Eulogy

Greg has shared his story of Tren’s story. He has stressed I have 5 minutes.

We have endless, wonderful stories of our sister Trenna.  

A truly life WELL LIVED.

However those stories are for another time and place.

I am here to say how incredibly thankful and grateful that we  have … Read the rest ... “Eulogy Part 2”

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2020 End of Life Eulogy Love and Marriage Mourning Music

Soundtrack of Trenna’s Life

Postcard of Smiling Trenna
The postcard handed out at the celebration

By Greg

Setting Some Context

On 15 January 2021 a celebration of Trenna’s life was held. I wanted to hand out a postcard which had a picture of Trenna and a couple of links to a playlist I developed after Trenna passed away a few weeks earlier. I then put up a Facebook post to help people to click through to the playlist.

That Facebook post appears below and I have embedded the Youtube Playlist and the Spotify below.

I … Read the rest ... “Soundtrack of Trenna’s Life”

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2020 Craig House End of Life Eulogy Grief Marfan Mofflyn Homes Mourning

Eulogy

Trenna looking at a landscape
North Island of NZ. Escaping the earthquake -17 November 2016

A Celebration of Trenna’s Life  –  15 January 2021

By Greg

Below is the eulogy I delivered at the Celebration of Trenna’s Life (her funeral). In due course I will do another post explaining what I wanted to achieve from the event and how friends and family helped me to organise it.

One of Trenna’s sisters, Nancy also gave a eulogy, as did Trenna’s friend, Helen. I will be publishing their words in the near future.

Eulogy

It is, of … Read the rest ... “Eulogy”