In this episode, host Natasha Smith sits down with author Clarissa Moll for a deeply meaningful conversation on helping children navigate loss. Clarissa shares from both her personal journey and her professional expertise, offering compassionate, practical insight into how kids grieve, how adults can walk alongside them, and what it really looks like to build resilience in grieving families. If you care for children who are navigating loss or you’ve wondered how to support a grieving child in your community, this episode is a rich and gentle guide.
I love that you use that word village because that is precisely what every child needs when they’re grieving… A Sphere of influence, who can build into them, who can, speak into their lives and who can be a listener who stays and says to them, I’m gonna be with you for the long haul.
clarissa moll
Tenderly written and illustrated, this heartwarming, fictional tale equips children to cope with the confusing and conflicting emotions that come with the death of a loved one. For parents and caregivers, this book helps them initiate important family discussions about grief and loss.
Get the book here.
Main Points
- How kids understand and process grief at different ages
- Why grief revisits throughout childhood and adolescence
- What adults can do to nurture resilience in grieving children
- Practical ways to support kids while honoring both joy and sorrow
Other Ways to Listen to this Podcast with Clarissa Moll:
About the Guest
Today I’m joined by Clarissa Moll. She is an award-winning writer and podcaster who helps bereaved people flourish after loss. Clarissa’s writing appears in Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, RELEVANT, Modern Loss, Grief Digest, and more.
She co-hosted Christianity Today’s “Surprised by Grief” podcast and produces Christianity Today’s flagship news podcast, “The Bulletin.” She is the author of four books and her latest work, a children’s book, Hope Comes to Stay. Connect with Clarissa here.
Mentioned in this episode:
Hope Comes to Stay and Help, Hurt, Hope by Clarissa Moll
Can You Just Sit With Me and Black Woman Grief by Natasha Smith
