July 28, 2026
What Grief Builds When You Let It with Justin Anderson
<div class="SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">What do you do with grief that has nowhere else to go?</span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "TextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0" lang="EN-US" xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">In this episode of <strong>Serenity Rising</strong>, Bron sits down with Justin Anderson, known to his community as J. Vaelorin, a network engineer turned dark fantasy world builder. After losing his grandmother to cancer, Justin </span><span class= "NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">channelled</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0"> years of unspoken grief into </span><span class= "NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">VaelorinVerse</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">, a fantasy universe where mental health is the magic system. This is a conversation about carrying loss forward instead of leaving it behind, and about what becomes possible when grief is finally </span><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">witnessed</span><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">.</span></span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span style= "font-size: 14pt;"><strong><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">SHOW NOTES</span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559738":320,"335559739":160,"335572079":6,"335572080":4,"335572081":10066329,"469789806":"single"}"> </span></strong></span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "TextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0" lang="EN-US" xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">In this episode of Serenity Rising, Bron speaks with Justin Anderson, a network engineer from Muncie, Indiana who writes under the </span><span class= "NormalTextRun ContextualSpellingAndGrammarErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">name</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0"> J. Vaelorin. Justin is the founder of </span><span class= "NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">Vaelorin</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0"> Verse</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">, a dark fantasy universe he built from grief that, in his own words, had nowhere else to live.</span></span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "TextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0" lang="EN-US" xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">When Justin's grandmother died of cancer, he insisted on carrying her casket himself and designed her tombstone, writing the inscription Those who are loved will never be forgotten. That line is now tattooed on his arm and sits at the </span><span class= "NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">centre</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0"> of everything he has built since, including an anonymous online memorial wall and a mental health campaign voiced by thirteen different actors giving sound to </span><span class= "NormalTextRun ContextualSpellingAndGrammarErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">self doubt</span><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">.</span></span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">This conversation moves through the promise Justin made to his grandmother before she died, the choice he made at his lowest point in high school to keep that promise rather than give up on it, and the two doors he now believes lead into grief. </span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "TextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0" lang="EN-US" xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">One door is internal, the one where we can say I am grieving, I am sad, I am afraid. The other is external, where grief is processed through what we build, </span><span class= "NormalTextRun ContextualSpellingAndGrammarErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">create</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0"> or do. Justin explains why not everyone, particularly men raised to suppress vulnerability, can walk through the first door straight away, and why that does not mean they are avoiding their grief.</span></span><span class="EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "TextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0" lang="EN-US" xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">Bron and Justin also talk about anticipatory grief, the grief carried by carers, family </span><span class= "NormalTextRun ContextualSpellingAndGrammarErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">members</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0"> and anyone sitting in a waiting room fearing a loss that has not happened yet. </span></span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "TextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0" lang="EN-US" xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">Justin shares what he wishes someone had told him in that season, and why he built an anonymous memorial wall so people could </span><span class= "NormalTextRun SpellingErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">honour</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0"> someone they had lost without needing to explain themselves.</span></span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">Throughout the episode, Bron and Justin return to a theme that runs through Serenity Rising: that gratitude and grief are not opposites. It is possible to be shattered by a loss and, at the same time, grateful for what it built in you.</span><span class="EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">Your healing matters every day.</span><span class="EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559739":160}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><strong><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">In this episode, Bron and Justin explore:</span><span class="EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559738":200,"335559739":80}"> </span></strong></p> </div> <div class="ListContainerWrapper SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <ul class="BulletListStyle1 SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="list"> <li class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="listitem" aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="●" data-font="" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props= "{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"●","469777815":"hybridMultilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">Why Justin designed and wrote his grandmother's tombstone inscription himself</span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":80}"> </span></p> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="ListContainerWrapper SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <ul class="BulletListStyle1 SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="list"> <li class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="listitem" aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="●" data-font="" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props= "{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"●","469777815":"hybridMultilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">The promise he made to graduate and how it carried him through his darkest year</span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":80}"> </span></p> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="ListContainerWrapper SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <ul class="BulletListStyle1 SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="list"> <li class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="listitem" aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="●" data-font="" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props= "{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"●","469777815":"hybridMultilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">The two doors of grief, one internal and one external, and why both are valid entry points</span><span class="EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559739":80}"> </span></p> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="ListContainerWrapper SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <ul class="BulletListStyle1 SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="list"> <li class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="listitem" aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="●" data-font="" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props= "{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"●","469777815":"hybridMultilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="4" data-aria-level="1"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">Anticipatory grief and what to say to someone already grieving a loss that has not happened yet</span><span class="EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559739":80}"> </span></p> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="ListContainerWrapper SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <ul class="BulletListStyle1 SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="list"> <li class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="listitem" aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="●" data-font="" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props= "{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"●","469777815":"hybridMultilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">The anonymous memorial wall built to hold grief without judgement</span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":80}"> </span></p> </li> </ul> </div> </div> <div class="SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <div class="ListContainerWrapper SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <ul class="BulletListStyle1 SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="list"> <li class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="listitem" aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="●" data-font="" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props= "{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"●","469777815":"hybridMultilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="6" data-aria-level="1"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">How gratitude and grief can coexist without cancelling each other out</span><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":80}"> </span></p> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="ListContainerWrapper SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <ul class="BulletListStyle1 SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="list"> <li class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0" role="listitem" aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="●" data-font="" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props= "{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"●","469777815":"hybridMultilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="7" data-aria-level="1"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">Connection as Justin's word for serenity, and what it means for carers and loved ones</span><span class="EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559739":80}"> </span></p> </li> </ul> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "EOP Selected SCXW240870656 BCX0" data-ccp-props= "{"335559739":80}"> </span></p> </div> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW240870656 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW240870656 BCX0"><span class= "TextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0" lang="EN-US" xml:lang="EN-US" data-contrast="auto"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0">Make </span><span class= "NormalTextRun ContextualSpellingAndGrammarErrorV2Themed SCXW240870656 BCX0">every day</span><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW240870656 BCX0"> count friends.</span></span></p> <p><strong>Connect with Justin</strong></p> <div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCXW36227153 BCX0"> <p class="Paragraph SCXW36227153 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW36227153 BCX0">Website: <a href= "https://vaelorinverse.com/">https://vaelorinverse.com/</a> </span></p> <p class="Paragraph SCXW36227153 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW36227153 BCX0">Instagram: @jvaelorin <a href= "https://www.instagram.com/Jvaelorin">https://www.instagram.com/Jvaelorin</a> </span></p> <p class="Paragraph SCXW36227153 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW36227153 BCX0">LinkedIn: <a href= "https://www.linkedin.com/company/vaelorinverse/">https://www.linkedin.com/company/vaelorinverse/</a> </span></p> <p class="Paragraph SCXW36227153 BCX0"><span class= "NormalTextRun SCXW36227153 BCX0">Substack: <a href= "https://substack.com/@jvaelorin">https://substack.com/@jvaelorin</a> </span></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Connect With The Serenity Project </strong></p> <p>Website: <a href= "https://serenityproject.com.au/">https://serenityproject.com.au</a></p> <p>Instagram: <a href= "https://instagram.com/bron_watson">https://instagram.com/bron_watson</a></p> <p>Facebook: <a href= "https://facebook.com/bronwatsonme">https://facebook.com/bronwatsonme</a></p> <p>LinkedIn: <a href= "https://linkedin.com/in/bronwatson">https://linkedin.com/in/bronwatson</a> </p> </div> <p class="p1"><span class="s1">YouTube<span class= "Apple-converted-space"> </span> <a href= "https://www.youtube.com/@BronWatson">https://www.youtube.com/@BronWatson</a></span></p> <p class="p1">Have a question or feedback? You can leave a message here: <a href= "https://fanlist.com/serenityproject"><span class= "s1">https://fanlist.com/serenityproject</span></a></p> </div> </div>