Just because time may have passed, it doesn’t mean your broken heart has healed
For the past four nights, I’ve been absorbed by the ITV adaptation of Anne Williams’ story to find the truth after her son died in the Hillsborough disaster in 1989.
As a 12-year-old Liverpool fan at the time, I remember the events starting to unfold live on TV, when we should have been watching a semi-final match.
I remember my mum staring, open-mouthed, stunned.
In the years that followed, match days at Anfield would involve walking past the memorial on the way to take our seats, as a mark of respect. We’d join in singing ‘Justice to the 96.’ (I still won’t buy The Sun).
It’s only now, as an adult watching ‘Anne’ that the full enormity of the horror, the loss, the injustice, the years of campaigning and fighting hit me. All I could do was cry. These 97 fans who went to watch a football match didn’t come home and their families became stuck for years fighting for the truth. And still now, nobody has paid a price for these unlawful deaths.
It got me thinking. What happens when you find yourself campaigning relentlessly for something following the death of a loved one, and you do get an outcome? Then what?
Do you feel at peace? Or do you feel like you’ve lost your sense of purpose? Or were you left feeling bereft all over again?
Just because time may have passed, it doesn’t mean your broken heart has healed, even if it’s years later. You don’t have to live with your pain alone. We are here to help and can find the right support for you - get in touch at hello@griefspecialists.org to find out more.