DEAR HARRIETTE: My grandmother recently passed away, and I am trying to find a way to honor her. I find it difficult to stir up good memories about my grandmother because our relationship was a bit distant. I have no ill feelings toward her, and I miss her. Can you help me remember the good times? -- Rest in Peace, Memphis, Tenn.
DEAR REST IN PEACE: What you may want to do is connect with other surviving family members to listen to their memories. Ask them to share stories from their recollections about doing things with your grandmother -- the highs and the lows. Go through old photos of your grandmother and family gatherings. See experiences through those images. Meditate on your grandmother, and see if an image comes up where you and she experienced a tender moment. If so, hold onto that.
If not, choose to be grateful that she lived and, therefore, you live as part of her bloodline. If there are surviving family members whom you like, you may want to use this time moving forward to become closer to them so that the family ties become closer.