A few weeks ago, Australian mother and fashion business owner Emilee Hembrow shared her devastating news that her baby died in utero at 30 weeks.
She posted beautiful artwork and sorrowful words about her loss.
The artwork was created by Tiff Nelhams, a UK based artist use under the name of TiffsArt.
Josie’s Juice interviewed Tiff about her art and how she felt when she saw her art on Emilee’s page (see below).
How did you feel when you saw that Emilee had used your art for her sad news announcement?
Whenever I hear of a baby being born asleep, I feel heartbroken. But I have to look beyond that and focus on the parents and family involved. So, when I first saw my picture and the news there was a mixture of emotions. Firstly, extreme sadness that Emilee had to go through such a heartrending trauma. Secondly, pleased that my work helped her to announce the sad news. I wanted to reach out to her to offer my support, and ask to share my details so that others in her position could also contact me for my work to support them. Sometimes, people do not realise that ‘babies born asleep’ have parents who are grieving for life; this is why I offer a range of different items to enable each individual to choose what is right for them.
Have people reached out to you to ask you more about your art?
Yes, I have had some people reach out to me, and many have said how much my work means to them. Previous clients have also sent me pictures of my artwork on display, including one of my Angels artwork on a gravestone which was amazing. However, the media have taken my work and not given my details, which is very sad. This stops others knowing that I am here with support that can be personalised to them and their grief.
Tell me more about your own story of loss?
This was my step-sister’s loss; it shook all of us to the core. She lost her 22 month old daughter and I wanted to give her a memorial for her and her children to keep. That is how my first family drawing, with an Angel started. Her strength was and is phenomenal through the shock of such an unexpected loss.
How have you found you can express yourself through art?
My art has helped me. I struggle with severe depression and anxieties, which can stop me going out. Having my business and working closely with so many people throughout the world helps me deal with my day to day issues. It is a form of expression. My art is a form of communication to the world, helping, supporting and hopefully comforting others.
Can people from around the world buy your art?
Yes, I post worldwide and have done for many years now, I have a lot of regular international customers. Unfortunately, my online shop isn’t set up for international orders yet, so I take them directly via email or social media messages.
Best news ever. Deng Adut has been named the NSW Australian of the Year.
The 33 year old refugee and criminal lawyer shed tears as he received this top honour from Premier Mike Baird at ceremony in Sydney on Monday night. He said he was beyond surprised.
"Shocked," he said. "I never dreamed of anything. Even (being) a fisherman."
Adut was forced to fight as a child soldier at the age of six in Sudan before he was smuggled out and made it to Australia.
From illiterate refugee to criminal lawyer, Adut is studying for a second master's degree while running AC Law Group, which he set up to fight for members of the Sudanese community from his home in Blacktown in Sydney's west.
His story is well known, largely thanks to a TV advertising campaign for Western Sydney University, which depicts his remarkable story:
Adut said Australia was not his adopted country, but his home.
Is this not the most inspiring story? That TV ad moves me EVERY SINGLE TIME.
A new show is coming to Australian TV... and you can be a part of it. UPDATED: 'Look Me In The Eye' starts on Wednesday September 6, 2017 on SBS and SBS 'On Demand'. For SBS On Demand go here: https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/ First, some questions they ask:
Is there a painful rift between you and a family member?
Have you grown distant from a friend you used to care about?
Has a close relationship ended and you don’t know how to move on?
SBS are looking for people who genuinely want to reconcile after years apart to participate in a compelling new TV documentary series.
'Look Me In The Eye' could provide an opportunity to heal old wounds - is it's where you want to go.
Could sitting face to face and looking in each other’s eyes for several minutes help you find the closure you deserve?
Oh gosh, you guys... the very thought of this for me... I don't know!
But for many, it could be the 'place' to go to start to heal. Or, start a reconnection process.
Have you become distant or fallen out with a family member, friend, colleague or lover?
Are you at a loss as to how to reconnect with this person?
Do you want the opportunity gain closure or to start a fresh?
Perhaps you just need to see that person one more time.
No words are spoken, but so much can be said.
Here is what they are looking for (taken from the casting website):
People of all ages and backgrounds who are genuinely looking to reconnect with someone in their life
People who are willing to share their story on television about why they became distant from this person
People who are willing to spend several minutes looking in the eyes of the person they want to reconnect with
Key eligibility requirements
You must be 18 years of age
You must be an Australian Citizen or Permanent Resident
You must be available for approximately a 2-day-shoot period between the 28th November 2016 and 20th January 2017
You must abide by theApplication Terms & Conditions in order to be considered by us for the Program
How to Apply
You must fill out the entire application form openly and honestly (which will take several minutes)
You must attach a clear, recent photograph of yourself
If your application is successful, Endemol Shine Australia’s Casting Team will contact you to discuss the next step
The basic premise of the documentary series: two people who have had a falling out/haven’t spoken to each other in years sit in a room together, with non-verbal communication, and look at each other. It’s based on psychological idea/theory that eye contact can be more powerful than verbal.
To give you an idea of the power of this process, you may be interested in a popular video of a similar experience filmed by Amnesty International,called "Look Beyond Borders":
The show is looking for people who want to reconnect with a loved one, an ex, a colleague, a family member without actually talking to them. Freaky, right?
The documentary, which will hit screens in 2017,is a compelling look at what happens
when eye contact, and nothing but eye contact, is used as a form of communication when
all other attempts to reconcile have failed. Recent studies have shown that eye contact has a uniquely powerful effect on how we
connect with other people. When no other words are spoken, so much can be said. The concept is based on the research behind the power of uninterrupted eye contact
developed by psychologist Arthur Aron in 1997. "Eye contact provides some of the strongest information" says social psychologist
James Wirth, who has conducted more recent studies in 2010 about the impact of eye
gazing. That's why often it is said that eye contact can be more powerful than words. 'Look Me In The Eye' is seeking Australians of at least 18 years old from all backgrounds
who are genuinely looking to reconnect with someone in their life. Ideal candidates are
those who are living with an unresolved conflict with a family member, friend or colleague. Those who want to be involved are ideally looking for an opportunity to reconcile and start
fresh with someone and both parties must consent to meeting. The series will seek to find
out if eye contact alone can help bridge personal and psychological riffs. Interested applicants should head to the casting website, lookmeintheeye.com.au to apply - see link above. More about Executive Producer, Debbie Cuell: Debbie has over twenty years experience developing and producing high quality programs for the
commercial networks, Foxtel, the ABC, and SBS in Australia. Her expertise in factual television has
seen her in leading roles on highly regarded series, including most recently Kings Cross ER for the
Nine Network, Coast Australia, for the History Channel on Foxtel and BBC -2. Prior to that Debbie
was Executive Producer on the documentary series Taking on the Chocolate Frog, which was a
finalist in the 2014 AACTA awards for best Documentary Television program and also a finalist in
the 2014 SPAA (Screen Producers of Australia) awards for best Documentary series. Previously she was most notably Executive Producer of Development at Zapruder’s Other Films,
during which time she executive produced Gruen Sweat, which won the Rose D’or 2013 for Best
Entertainment Program and series 4 of The Gruen Transfer, which won the 2012 AACTA Award for
Best Light Entertainment Program. She also conceptualised, executive produced and directed
Country Town Rescue, a six part OB documentary series for ABC TV. The work of Yugoslavian performance artist Marina Abramovic has tapped into this same theme, especially her 2010 exhibition 'The Artist Is Present' at New York’s Museum of Modern Art. She sat at a table in the museum and invited spectators to sit across from her and keep her gaze. At one point during the 736 (yikes!) hours of performance, Abramovic’s former partner unexpectedly sat down... and there were tears from the artist, sending video of their emotional reunion viral. Ah, you guys... so emotional! Watch:
To be eligible for filming the SBS series, candidates must be over 18 and available for a three-day shoot between October 31 and December 16. Applications via lookmeintheeye.com.au.
So, what are you waiting for? Are you up for it? UPDATED: 'Look Me In The Eye' starts on Wednesday September 6, 2017 on SBS and SBS 'On Demand'.
This most recent interview of deceased author Jackie Collins, quite possibly her last, with Australia's 'Studio 10', is one of the best, most comprehensive I have seen of her. Conducted by Angela Bishop, and screening only a month ago, I was utterly fascinated by this woman's life, her writing ethos (handwritten! And in various rooms of her house, depending on her mood), and the fact that she revealed she was writing her memoirs... a book on HER story, her life. Here are the two parts of the whole interview:
THIS is the reason medical technology exists, and this baby boy Luciano is the reason doctors do what they do: give life to the dream of fellow humans.
This is the story of Claudia, and her mother Antonietta and it will screen on '60 Minutes' Australia this Sunday September 13. Watch the preview clip here:
WATCH AN ADDITIONAL CLIP HERE - SO VERY EMOTIONAL. Says Claudia about her mother: "I still can't thank her enough. And I will never be able to." That's the thing with mums - the list is long, and the gratitude is never ending. This clip moves me SO much, not only because the act is so selfless, so beautiful, but also because I truly get what mums do for their children. They will do ANYTHING for us. And I miss that feeling so much, that look, that unconditional love from my own mother. '60 Minutes' will screen on Sunday night on Channel Nine, at 8.30pm.
Comedian Russell Gilbert - best known for his comedy sketches on TV show 'Hey, Hey, It's Saturday' - has expressed his grief at the loss of his beloved partner of 19 years, Rochelle Nolan.
The words he posted on Instagram are truly devastating: He posted this photo below, with this caption:
You know the day now: bright yellow messages, celebs posting inspo-words, friends putting it up as almost an obligatory status update on Facebook. But: what does it actually mean? Well, I could pull out the (very on-message, kind and real) PR blurb. And the videos below are excellent, and also very real. But for me it means: - Do not ignore when a friend is down. That means, if they are posting a cryptic - or obvious - message on Facebook, don't pretend you didn't see it. Reach out. Perhaps you don't connect with them much. This could be your opportunity to show them your do value their friendship. Nobody has ever thought less of a person for caring for them, even if you don't get a warm reaction, you'll plant the seed that you care, and they'll feel liked or loved. Isn't that a nice feeling? We ALL want that. Then: follow through and meet up, or do something for them. Or just check in again with them. - Check in on your brother or sister if the family is in crisis. Death in the family is a big one for this: if you've all been through a common grief experience, stick together, rather than drift apart. Drifting builds resentment and can start to build hate where there should be love. Start the R U OK message in the home. Just like charity. - Ask your closest co-worker, even your boss if it's appropriate, how they are doing, especially if you know they are struggling. We spend SO many hours together, it's little wonder we care so much about people we work with. Reach out, ask them. It could open a whole new level of friendship, which has the added advantage that you can ask them how they are doing several times a day, even lunch with them, offering a lovely cushion of support, all while working with them. It's kinda perfect. - I know for myself that, there are particular people I really, truly hoped would reach out to ME in my time of grief, when they definitely should have known better. My yardstick: if they've been to my home, celebrated good stuff with me, have my phone number - they should definitely have reached out, called, popped over. Not a text. Not a Facebook message. An actual, reach out, "how are you" connection. I can't recover from that - unless that person really makes an actual effort to connect with me. Anything else just feels like an obligation on their part, to keep me at arm's length in case they need me for something. That doesn't wash with me. Asking 'R U OK' actually means old school connection - phone call, visit, actual real life (not virtual) love. SO: do it... ask people in - our out - of your circle - if they are okay. They will feel better for it, and you'll be surprised at how much you do too. Watch the R U OK videos from the official site below. The Facebook page is HERE.
Did you see the gut wrenching story on '60 Minutes' Australia on William Tyrrell, the young boy who was abducted - he was three at the time, and has since surpassed his fourth birthday
Here is the '60 Minutes' Extra Minutes. CLICK HERE FOR THE LINK. UPDATED: WATCH THE FULL STORY HERE - CLICK ON THIS LINK.
Here is the video created by NSW Police several months ago:
60 Minutes also shared this photo and message: “Somebody knows what happened to William.” If you have any information relating to the disappearance of William Tyrrell, please call Crime Stoppers NSW on 1800 333 000. #60Mins
Today, September 1, marks the first anniversary of radio host Robin Bailey's late husband Tony Smart's passing. Robin has taken the opportunity to send a message of thanks to those closest to her and the anonymous support she receives from our loyal following (clip, transcript and photo from radio 97.3):
Today is a pretty big day for me because it was on this day a year ago that my husband of 15 years Tony Smart decided to take his own life.
I have spent so many hours thinking about this day 12 months ago. Could I have stopped it, what was different about the day, were there signs to predict what lay ahead and why… why would he do this to us… to me, his friends and family but mostly the kids and now 12 months on I know there are no answers.
Tony’s decision was his and his alone but I can say the fall out has been catastrophic. I won’t talk about my boys as they must have their own voice in this and will tell their own story to those they want to when the time comes… but I will say this has changed all of us for ever and damaged the three people Tony said he loved the most. His choices have handed his children a life sentence that they will feel the consequences of their whole lives. It is defining their adolescence and will shape their partner choice and how they parent their own children… as you can hear I am angry… angry at Tony for not realising the consequences of his actions because we will for a long time to come.
So what has happened in the last 12 months… I've bought then sold a house. I have turned around Tony’s business with the help of some amazing people and then sold it which means that Smartmen will live on in Shavershops, which is a lovely legacy for the boys. I have learnt how to do the big stuff but also the small like change over a gas bottle and hang pictures on a wall. I’ve lain in bed not wanting to get up but knowing I have to and I have just kept going because ultimately what else can you do?
I have made many mistakes in the last 12 months and big ones but I have also done some things right. I have put amazing people around us. From the practical like my most patient lawyer Gleeso to my accountant Mark and financial advisor Keiron who seriously need a medal as they talk me through documents I don’t understand for the 100th time. I have hired a uni student Clare to help get me organised for a couple of hours a week at home because being a dyslexic paper work is seriously not my thing and then there is my support… a group of woman who have picked me up countless times and either jollied or lovingly bullied me into keep going. There are my besties and countless others on the side lines who have made me meals and loved me into submission Alex, Ness, Fi and Ruth I could not have done this without you… then there are the people who have caught my kids. The GPS school that has been outstanding in their pastoral care of my two eldest boys and my youngest son’s state school. The boy’s Godparents who turn up to watch soccer games or rouse on them to clean their rooms and give them that stern male hand that they desperately crave and my mum and sister who have been thrown back to a time when my father died of natural causes when I was 11. It has forced us all to deal with our own family demons and yet they still fly to me whenever it is needed to stand as a unified force against the world.
Then there is work… Thank God for it as seriously it is the one consistent normal in my life and something I at least know how to do. You guys listening don't know this but there are many times when Tez, Bob, Ruth and Ash have to cover for me either on air or off as some crisis or another rears its ugly head and I am forced to leave early or miss an event or just not cry coming out of a break. We are a team in every way and I am so grateful for this job and all the people I work with… Thank you guys thank you xxx
And to the countless strangers, you guys, who continue to care about me and offer your love and light through your kind words. I get your messages through social media and email and feel so blessed to have such amazing anonymous support. But I said in the beginning that I didn't want to be the poster girl for depression or suicide and I still feel that but I do believe my media experience can be used in a way to start conversations. The statistics for both depression and suicide are awful in Australia and something needs to be done so why not me and why not soon... something positive and long term needs to come out of this dreadful experience.
Finally, the one question I get asked the most is "How are you?" Well let me answer this honestly. If there are seven stages of grieving then I am moving into stage number four. I have gone through firstly shock and denial, then pain and guilt, then anger and bargaining and am now shifting into reflection and loneliness. It's hard, it is really, really hard to watch my children grapple with desperately missing their dad while blaming themselves for HIS decision. In some ways it is harder now than it was when he first died as the practical stuff is resolved it’s the emotional tsunami that just keeps coming and I can not fill the void that is left and that eats me up as a mum as I am supposed to be the one that can make it all better and I just can’t. And honestly it’s tough keeping my weapons up as I fight and fight to protect my kids and find happiness. Plus I am really lonely… I can’t begin to imagine bringing a partner into our family life but fighting this fight alone is super tough… and at it’s most basic level I just miss being held and sharing my day with an adult I love. The great news is that with three stages left in this process according to the experts it will turn around and things will start to look up until one day I’ll be at stage seven which is acceptance and hope. As a family we are not nearly there yet but I can see the light and know that my boys and I are walking towards it.
Robin has said that since her husband Tony died she has received many, many words of support. But sadly, some taunts from truly awful people. Josie's Juice wrote this piece on Tony's passing last year (and sadly, some awful comments were received on there also).
If you or anyone you know is suffering from depression please contact Lifeline's 24-hour service on 13 11 14 or via their website.
Dyer has been dubbed 'the father of motivation'. And - he is father to eight children.
This message has just been posted on Facebook:
Wayne has left his body, passing away through the night. He always said he couldn't wait for this next adventure to begin and had no fear of dying. Our hearts are broken, but we smile to think of how much our scurvy elephant will enjoy the other side.
We Love You Forever Dad/Wayne
The Dyer Family UPDATED: Dr Wayne Dyer's publisher Hay House has just posted:
It is with a very heavy heart that I let you all know that Dr Wayne Dyer passed away last night in Maui. Here is the post from his Facebook Page from his faamily - Reid
Wayne has left his body, passing away through the night. He always said he couldn't wait for this next adventure to begin and had no fear of dying. Our hearts are broken, but we smile to think of how much our scurvy elephant will enjoy the other side. We Love You Forever Dad/Wayne
The Dyer Family
Here is the just-in tweet from Ellen DeGeneres:
The world has lost an incredible man. Wayne Dyer officiated our wedding & was an inspiration to so many. Sending love pic.twitter.com/kzsCS278jr
Here is another motivational speech:
He says: "My name is Wayne Dyer, and I'm 73 years old, and I have sex almost every day..."
(But watch the video for his punchline...)
He will be hugely missed:
