The Journal

Navigating the complexities of probate, estate planning, and inheritance.

A brown dog with a gray muzzle resting in a sunlit kitchen doorway

September 27, 20264 min readPlanning Ahead

Who Will Care for Your Pet After You Die?

How to choose a caregiver for your pet, cover the first few days, and pay for long-term care. Includes what a Texas will can do and how a pet trust works.

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Grief & Loss5 min read

5 Ways We Can Show Up for Our Friends Who Are Grieving

What to say, how to offer practical help, and why staying in touch matters. Five ways to support a grieving friend while respecting what they need.

September 13, 2026

Soft waves receding over wet sand at golden hour with dune grass in the foreground

Grief & Loss8 min read

Grief Timelines Are a Myth: What the Research Shows

The five stages of grief came from interviews with dying patients, and bereavement research since has found no fixed schedule. What trajectory studies, the dual process model, and the DSM-5-TR say about grieving on your own clock.

July 9, 2026

A spiral notebook and pen beside a small stack of unopened envelopes on a kitchen table in morning light

Grief & Loss7 min read

Administrative Grief: Why Estate Paperwork Feels So Hard

A death produces forms and deadlines at the moment grief takes your attention and memory. Why the folder feels impossible, and the six things that are genuinely enough for the first two weeks.

July 3, 2026