This Is Us

The River

Bridges between me and those I’ve lost

Denise Clemen
Human Parts
Published in
11 min readMar 2, 2021

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Black and white stepping stones in a river.
Photo: baona/Getty Images

When I got through the cold they made me swim in a river, and I forgot his name. I forgot all the names. — Sarah Ruhl, ‘Eurydice’

I cared for both my boyfriend and my mother in my house. My boyfriend died in his hospice bed in…

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Denise Clemen
Human Parts

Birth/first mother, recovering wife, retired caregiver, traveler, collage artist. Advocate of #adopteerights and #reproductiverights and other good things.