What to Say to Someone Who's Grieving, One Simple Question, and Holiday Table Topics for Every Family

Highlights From Our November (Plus Our Favorite Readers Comments)

Welcome to Best of the Month, our wrap-up of all our most popular posts and favorite comments from readers like you. We love hearing your feedback—here on Bulletin, or on Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. Your feedback helps us learn what you like and build community.

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November was our biggest month yet. More than 175,000 people read a post on The Nonlinear Life in the last 30 days. Thank you!! Here are some posts that did especially well—grateful to everyone who subscribes, reads, shares, and comments.

1. What to Say to Someone Who's Grieving

In reading all the comments about my dad's passing last month, one phrase jumped out. And boy does it have a fascinating backstory. The response to this article was overwhelming—our most popular ever! It's a reminder that we can't get through life transitions alone. Readers from Bulletin chimed with personal stories and suggestions:

After I lost my 18 yr old daughter Faith, I have had many people try to comfort me. Please don’t tell a grieving parent ”well at least you have other children and 3 granddaughters.” That is not helpful. instead, please ask them to tell you about their loved one that passed. Oddly it brings us comfort to share our memories of our loved ones. - Lisa Golightly-Pitts

And what works for them when it comes to surviving times of grief:

The most comforting thing to me was them acknowledging that there's no way they could understand what I'm feeling, that if I need them, even just to vent to, day or night, that they would be there, and to hang on to my good memories, because sometimes that's all that gets you through the hardest times. -Katy Kalman

1. What the World Series Taught Us About Men. They Love Pearls!

My beloved Atlanta Braves won the world series for the first time in two decades, so I found myself watching a lot of baseball this month. And boy was I surprised by the biggest trend! From Connell in Sally Rooney's Normal People to Harry Styles—and now the baseball diamond—male jewelry has been making a stylish and sexy comeback. One reader sounded off in the Bulletin comments about her feelings around man jewelry:

Love this piece! My husband started wearing jewelry after seeing how great it looked on sports icons—I'm very much in favor of this new addition to his outfits! - Sara Condoy

1. The Simple Question That Will Make Any Holiday Dinner a Success

I am thrilled to report that I'm not the only "gratitude grump!" It was great to hear from readers who were also eager to kick their own cynicism:

I didn’t think about gratitude from that perspective. I like learning to look at life from different angles - this is a new one. - Silvana Ordonez

And eager to try out new tricks:

Thank you for this article. I love Thanksgiving and I’m going to try the Thankful game. - Teri Shanklin Soyk

1. 12 Foolproof Table Topics for Any Family Gathering

'Tis the season of family gatherings. For years I've made annual Thanksgiving questions—this year I was thrilled to share them, and even more thrilled with the response. But while these questions were designed with Thanksgiving in mind, they work for any gathering, really! So with more holidays coming, here's a second chance. The last one was the most successful for us this past weekend.

Love this! Will definitely be using this at Thanksgiving this year! - Nina De Angelo

Thank you again for your warm response to this newsletter. I have lots more planned for the holidays to come, including debunking the biggest myth about Hanukkah in a few days. And while I continue writing at the same place, starting in December I'll be emailing only twice a week. I'm excited for what's to come.

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Thanks for reading The Nonlinear Life. Please help us grow the community by subscribing, sharing, and commenting below. Also, you can learn more about me, read my introductory post, or scroll through my other posts.

Or these books: Life Is in the Transitions, The Secrets of Happy Families, Council of Dads.

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