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YOU CAN ALWAYS TALK TO POSSUM AT LIFE FOREST
Written by Amanda Goodell, Stephanie Rush, and Rachel Lally
Life Forest is Here to Help Children Navigate Grief
You Can Always Talk to Possum at Life Forest is a story to help children navigate grief. The story is told through the eyes of a young chipmunk who has lost a beloved friend. Throughout the book, the chipmunk meets other forest creatures that will teach him about the stages of grief and model positive coping strategies for different feelings children may experience after a loss. The goal is to help children and caregivers open a dialogue about the difficult topic of death and provide tools to help manage some of the intricate emotions that come with grieving.
You Can Always Talk to Possum at Life Forest is available to order from your favorite bookstore.
As part of the Life Forest Non-Profit's mission of education, we are offering a free downloadable work-through book to help children navigate grief. This workbook can be given to classroom teachers and grief counselors so they can easily print many copies to provide children with an action-based work-through activity. To reduce printing costs for the receiver, the download is in black and white.
The work-through book can be utilized independently or in coordination with the story book, You Can Always Talk to Possum at Life Forest.
Free Downloadable Work-Through Book (PDF)
Did you know? According to the Childhood Bereavement Estimation Model (CBEM), one in twelve children in New Hampshire will experience the death of a loved one before turning 18—highlighting the critical need for supportive resources like this.
About the Authors
Amanda Goodell is a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst at Riverbend Community Mental Health, where she works in the Children’s Intervention Program. She holds a Master of Science in Applied Behavior Analysis from Antioch University New England and a Bachelor of Arts in Art and Psychology from Colby-Sawyer College. Amanda is deeply committed to trauma-informed care and recognizes the profound impact that grief, loss, and trauma can have on a child’s development—particularly in neurodivergent children, who may face unique challenges in expressing their emotional experiences. With a background that blends clinical expertise and creative expression, Amanda continues to nurture her artistic side through painting, illustration, photography, and even Lego. She understands the therapeutic value of creativity and the natural world, often engaging in nature-based activities to support her own mental health and healing journey. Amanda lives in Concord, New Hampshire, with her partner and rescue Boston Terrier, Ollie. Amanda brings empathy, insight, and creativity to her practice, striving to support children and families with compassion and care. She is honored to have contributed to this meaningful project and wholeheartedly supports Life Forest’s mission and purpose, which deeply aligns with her love for animals and the natural world.
Stephanie Rush was raised in New Hampshire and attended college in Massachusetts, focusing her studies on psychology and literature. She has always enjoyed working with others and has a passion for giving back to her community. Stephanie began her career with early intervention but was drawn to mental health and family services. After 10 years working with children and families through community mental health, she switched roles to work in public kindergarten. Stephanie spends most of her time with her family, enjoying baking, reading, and the beauty of nature in New England. She believes Life Forest is doing a wonderful service to the community by making the difficult topic of death something to embrace and bringing people together in a natural and supportive environment. Life Forest offers an inclusive community where families can begin to heal together, rather than feeling isolated in their loss.
Rachel Lally is passionate about working with children in the mental health field as she finds this work to be incredibly important, valuable, and rewarding. Rachel brings this passion to life in her role as a Child and Family Therapist at Riverbend Community Mental Health in their Children's Intervention Program. She holds an M.S. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from New England College and a B.A. in Psychology from Keene State College. Rachel firmly believes in the power of nature in healing and is working on hiking all the New Hampshire forty-eight four-thousand-footers. Rachel is an avid animal lover, with cats being her favorite. She shares her home with three loving and rambunctious cats, which reinforces her belief in the power of animal-human connection. She hopes that this book will help children and adults learn about death in a gentle, caring manner and validate all their feelings and thoughts along the way. Life Forest is very special to Rachel as her beloved childhood cat and best friend, Tigger, was very much part of writing this book. Tigger lived until the age of 21 years old and now rests at the Life Forest with beautiful flowers marking her grave. Rachel full-heartedly supports Life Forest's purpose and mission and feels honored to be part of this project.