“Few of us safely escape the bitter knowledge of loss, the howling silence, the waiting and the watching, the listening, the wishing. We fight to hold on to recent memories even as, with a force like gravity, time pulls us apart from those who have died.”
In her memoir, Grieving, Ruth Coughlin lays bare the story of her and her husband, William J. Coughlin as their lives, intertwined, are forever changed by his sudden and terminal illness.
Written with beauty, poignancy and clarity, it is as much about love as it is about grief; a comforting reminder that in the aftermath of death the shape of love is forced to change, but its depth and endurance remains untouchable.
The journey of Ruth and William is both remarkable and heart-breaking.
They are a vibrant couple; friends and lovers planning to grow old together, always believing in tomorrow.
Yet, as they discover too early, the subject of Grieving is one that will cast a shadow over all of us during our lives — rarely do we expect it, but when it arrives, we are at its mercy.
This is a book for anyone who has experienced the shattering reality of loss, the courage to let your loved one go in their final moments, the aftermath of an empty space in the bed, and the longing for a friend who is gone but never forgotten.
In prose that are written with stark honesty, Ruth Coughlin addresses the anguish of widowhood and the prospect of life after death.