Second-Year Widow: The Path From Grief to Transformation

By Anne Thrower

This book is about a widow's journey through grief, and how she was transformed spiritually during her second year of grief. Because she didn't see herself as very religious, the grieving process became a journey from thinking she could handle everything on her own to realizing that with God's help, the grief path became much easier. The transformation changed her entire outlook on life.
The book is a collection of memories of how she learned to accept change, including the unexpected spiritual transformation. At times touching and poignant, the book describes how she grew and transitioned during the grieving process with increasing courage and diminishing guilt.
This book is for widows struggling through the grieving process. And it's for widows, like the author, who may not have initially considered that God could be there waiting to help them through the process, and they are now open to considering his help for support.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Nov 28, 2020
• ISBN: 9781098327163

Book preview

© Anne Thrower 2020

ISBN: 978-1-09832-715-6

eBook ISBN: 978-1-09832-716-3

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by Permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

I would like to thank the following publishers for their permission to use their invaluable works.

Letters to an American Lady by CS Lewis © copyright CS Lewis Pte Ltd 1966.

The Problem of Pain by CS Lewis © copyright CS Lewis Pte Ltd 1940.

Mere Christianity by CS Lewis © copyright CS Lewis Pte Ltd 1942, 1943, 1944, 1952.

A Grief Observed by CS Lewis © copyright CS Lewis Pte Ltd 1961.

Used with permission.

Grieving the Loss of Someone You Love: Daily Meditations to Help You Through the Grieving Process by Raymond R. Mitsch and Lynn Brookside, 2014, http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/revell. Used with Permission from Baker Publishing Group

A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows Through Loss by Jerry L. Sittser Copyright © Copyright 1995, 2004 by Jerry L Sittser. Used by permission of Zondervan. www.zondervan.com

From One Widow to Another: Conversations on the New You by Miriam Neff, 2009. Used with Permission from Moody Publishers. moodypublishers.com

Seven Choices Finding Daylight after Loss Shatters your World by Elizabeth Harper Neeld, PhD. Permission for quotes from Elizabeth Harper Neeld. Website: elizabethharperneeld.com. Twitter: @elizabethneeld.

Excerpt from LOCKED ROOMS AND OPEN DOORS: DIARIES AND LETTERS OF ANNE MORROW LINDBERGH, 1933-1935. Copyright © 1974 by Anne Morrow Lindbergh and renewed 2003 by Jon M. Lindbergh, Reeve Lindbergh, and Land Morrow Lindbergh. Reprinted by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Anne Wilson Schaef, "Only in feeling them do I open myself to the lessons they can teach." https://annewilsonschaef.com/. Used with permission from Wilson Schaef Associates.

Helen Keller, …let us think of the great family of the heavy-hearted into which our grief has given us entrance, and inevitably, we will feel about us their arms, their sympathy, their understanding. Methuen, who originally published Peace at Eventide where the quote appeared is no longer the copyright holder. Attempts to find the copyright holder have not been successful.

This book is dedicated to the many widows who are on their own grief path.

Acknowledgments

No one should go through grief alone. Even those of us who think we are too independent should call on others during a loss. I think the same holds true for putting together a book on grief.

I relied a lot on experts in the field—many who have written wonderful books—during the grieving process and while writing this book. They were gracious to give me permission to acknowledge their work in my book and to formally recognize them in the book. I did pass around a rough draft of my book for people to read. Miriam Krasno, a good friend who just happens to be a good editor, was one of the early readers of the book. Her insights were invaluable as were Dr. Muriel Fuqua, English professor in the School of Humanities and Communication at Daytona State College. Dr. Fuqua’s background in theology and experience as a self-published author was literally a God-send for me. Mac’s cousin, Marie, was also gracious enough to look through a rough copy.

I thought it would be important to ask a couple of widow friends to look at the book from a widow’s perspective. Susan Casper, who volunteers with me at a local hospice, and Anne Nussle, whom I know through church, were kind enough to look over my copy. And my dear friends, Cathy Rinehart and Ann Hauptman, were also invaluable during the writing process.

But it’s with humility I want to thank you, the reader, for taking the chance to see if this book and its unknown author may have something that will help your journey. I hope I didn’t disappoint. Another good friend, Todd Richardson, picked up my book proofs one night and without prompting read the entire book and gently offered suggestions. I had been thinking of asking him, but I didn’t want him to feel obligated. We all need friends like that.

And, finally, I would like to thank Mac for his guidance. He was there in spirit, and I would like to believe, smiling, as I worked on this book.

Contents

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1.

A Year Later

Chapter 2.

Listening to