How to Tell if a Widower's Behavior is a Red Flag

If the widower is wearing his wedding ring, is that a red flag? What if his late wife's clothes are still in the closet or he can't stop talking about her? Are these red flags that he's not ready to date again? Are you sure? In this video Abel Keogh shows you how you can tell if ANY widower behavior is a red flag or if he's ready to move on and open his heart.

Need to talk about your relationship with your widower? Set up an appointment with Abel.

Why we keep the memory of my husband’s late wife alive for our children

From the Washington Post:

On a bright and breezy day in June, I walked across the street to collect the mail. Amid the bills, coupon mailers and furniture brochures, I spotted a quilting magazine. I knew it wasn’t for me. I can’t hem a pair of pants. It was for my husband’s first wife, Sherise, a woman who skillfully crafted quilts, blankets and holiday table runners.

Sherise died in a car accident 13 years before that magazine arrived in our mailbox. During our decade-long marriage, Brandon and I have moved so many times even our own mail doesn’t get forwarded. But Sherise’s quilting magazines? They always make their way to our kitchen table with her name affixed to the label.

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Even before Brandon and I married, I recognized that honoring Sherise’s memory was a part of appreciating my husband’s capacity to love and grieve. So when our boys came along, we didn’t hide Sherise under a metaphorical quilt. But we were strategic about when and how we told them about her.

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Wrapping my children in quilts that had belonged to Sherise’s children wasn’t a conscious decision. When my boys outgrew their baby blankets, we scoured our closets for larger ones. Each kid had their pick of about a half dozen. Now, as my boys snuggle up in her handiwork, I’m struck by how these keepsakes act as a bridge between then and now. I want my boys to understand that just because a person dies doesn’t mean their spirit — the essence of who they are — dies, too.

So, we celebrate Sherise by regularly indulging in her favorite things. We eat Reese’s peanut butter cups on her birthday and buy roses and stargazer lilies on the day she died. We keep a photo of Sherise and her two children in the upstairs hallway and a street sign with “Sherise Dr.” adorns the twins’ bedroom wall as part of their planes, trains and automobiles decor. But the most tangible link to Sherise is our loving beagle, Charlie. Now more white than brown, and with only three legs to hobble around, he was a gift from Brandon to Sherise on her 33rd birthday. Every time I look at him, I think about his two lives — one with Sherise’s family and one with mine.

Read the entire article at the Washington Post.

I thought the most interesting part of the article was that the author and her husband keep his late wife’s memory alive even though there are no biological children.

A Happy Widower Story

I recently had the chance to attend a funeral of a remarried widower. What I learned about the widower, his second marriage, and the adult children that were there serves as an example of how widowers can find love again and how adult children can embrace this new relationship.

Widowers and Long-Distance Relationships

Long distance relationships are even more challenging when you're dating a widower. How can you know if the widower is serious about a future together or if he's simply enjoying a casual, part-time relationship? In this video Abel Keogh identifies the unique challenges that come with a long-distance relationship with a widower, red flags to look out for, and 3 ways you can know if your long-distance relationship is on solid ground.