Name: Robin Smith
Kid’s names and ages: Trinity 36, India 24, Taylor 19
What are your favorite spots to visit in NWA?
I love to try new eateries…I used to do a lot of camping with my family and riding trails with friends, not so much these days…I also loved to entertain and cook for people I love. I love being with my family. WAC plays, Crystal Bridges…
We know your husband recently passed last year. What advice would you give another grieving wife?
Keep breathing. Don’t let anyone try to tell you when and how you should grieve. Accept help. Trust God, even though you have no clue why this had to happen. Keep talking to God even if you are mad. Keep breathing, again. Try visiting with a grief group. Hospice in our area has 6 week grief classes often. I found them helpful. I have attended two sessions since my loss March 2015. I speak with clergy. I speak with a counselor friend.
I have found that I can cry anywhere without shame…the grocery store..a restaurant. It is what it is. Talk to your physician. My physician has been a great help. Keep breathing. Your grief is your grief. Do the best that you can. There is no time limit.
How have you been able to keep going?
My kids…I want to spend as much time with them as possible before it is my time. Faith in God. If it weren’t for those two things, I’m not sure I would survive.
What do you most want people to remember about you?
That I tried. That I had the best of intentions. That I loved. That I tried to be selfless. That I loved God and prayed for others.
What’s something your friends might not know about you?
I am hard on myself. More than they know.
What’s a sure-fire way for you to wind down when you’re just exhausted?
In grief, just peaceful quiet.
If you could vacation anywhere in the world this winter, where would you go?
Somewhere beautiful and peaceful. Hot or cold.
What’s something you’ve always wanted to learn?
To play the piano is one thing. So I had my kids in piano for 8 years living vicariously through them.
What’s something that you would enjoy teaching others?
To be authentic. Teaching myself this also.
What’s the last thing you took a picture of?
My sister and two people that she thinks a lot of.
What’s been the happiest moment in your life so far?
Marrying my best friend and him telling me often through our marriage that he has had a happy life with me… and becoming pregnant with my two bio children…I had to go through fertility…I ovulated twice and have two children to show for the efforts and God’s grace.
One word to sum me up:
Redeemed.
