More than seventy children have worked in Oss today on a drawing for a deceased brother or sister. Together they made the largest ‘sky drawing’ in the Netherlands. The idea comes from the Never Beyond foundation. He believes that attention should not only be given to the parents when a child dies. The impact on brothers and sisters is also great, the foundation emphasizes.
One of the children who signed with us today is Liv-Ivy. She tells at Broadcasting Brabant what happened three years ago. On that day she saw her sister for the first time, but not as she had expected. “My aunt came and Giulia was in a basket. That way I could look at her,” says Liv-Yvi. Then it comes softly that it is very unfortunate. “Well I’m still the only child.”
Children grieve very differently than adults, explains child grief therapist Leoniek van der Maarel. “They live in the here and now. One moment they are happily playing with friends, until their mood suddenly turns into intense sadness. Then they play happily again. Children mourn in pieces.”
Florian is not over
It is precisely because children grieve so differently that Mirjam Louwen-van Bekkum took the initiative a few years ago to set up the Never Beyond Foundation. Her own son Florian lived only a few months before suddenly passing away. After his death she wrote the book Florian is not over† To cope with his death, but also because she wanted her son not to be forgotten. “I therefore wrote it primarily for his sisters and brother”, say Louwen.
Together with a number of other parents with similar experiences, Louwen also started the Nooit Voorbij foundation and a national week of Sterrenkinderen. The largest sky drawing in the Netherlands, made today in a playground in Oss, is the kick-off of that week. Later this week there will also be a bracelet making workshop and a webinar.
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