Badger’s Parting Gifts – Reading Rainbow (2001)

“When someone dies,” LeVar Burton shares in this tender Reading Rainbow clip from 2001, “there’s an empty space that’s left behind in your life. There’s sadness because you won’t see that person again and loneliness because you miss them. You might even feel angry.”

In the award-winning picture book Badger’s Parting Gifts by Susan Varley, Badger knows that it’s about time for him to depart, and when he does, his friends feel very sad.

“Mole, especially, felt lost, alone, and desperately unhappy,” until the animals came together and shared their special memories of Badger.

Ruby Dee narrates this gentle picture book about bereavement. At the end of the video, Burton talks about how we can process the raw feelings that we’re left with after we lose someone we love.

“There’s no way to replace a loved one who’s gone, but there are things you can do to feel better. You can have a good cry if you’re feeling sad or lonely, or you can find someone to talk to and share your feelings with them. Or like Badger’s friends, you can find ways to remember the wonderful things about them.”

Watch more videos about death and mourning, including:
• Father and Daughter by Michaël Dudok De Wit
• Duck, Death and the Tulip
• Ice Merchants, the Academy Award-nominated film by João Gonzalez
• Processing grief after tragedy and taking next steps after difficult events