Straight from My Heart: Journey of Hope, Love and Peace

By Jacqui DeLorenzo MS

Author Jacqui DeLorenzo shares several inspiring tales of hope and courage intended to resonate with anyone who has suffered a hardship or the loss of a loved one. She considers whether there is life after death. She also ventures on journeys to the other side of the rainbow to a place where there is no pain and no illness. She goes to a place

• Language: English
• Publisher: ReadersMagnet LLC
• Release date: Dec 19, 2020
• ISBN: 9781952896361

Jacqui DeLorenzo MS

Jacqui DeLorenzo, MS, LMHC, recently left her full-time position as an academic counselor at North Shore Community College. Jacqui continues to work part-time at North Shore Community College assisting students to achieve their goals. Her mission remains the same, which is to guide each student to a healthy self-esteem and success in their journey through life.

Book preview

Straight From My Heart: Journey of Hope, Love and Peace

Copyright © 2020 by Jacqui DeLorenzo

Published in the United States of America

ISBN Paperback: 978-1-952896-35-4

ISBN eBook: 978-1-952896-36-1

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any way by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the author except as provided by USA copyright law.

The opinions expressed by the author are not necessarily those of ReadersMagnet, LLC.

ReadersMagnet, LLC

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Book design copyright © 2020 by ReadersMagnet, LLC. All rights reserved.

Cover design by Ericka Obando

Interior design by Shemaryl Tampus

In memory of my Family:

My sister Mary DeLorenzo

My brother Johnny DeLorenzo

My sister Debbie DeLorenzo-Geary

My mom Anita C DeLorenzo

My dad John DeLorenzo

My maternal grandparents Lea and Edmund

My paternal grandparents Caroline and Getaneo

In memory of my relatives and friends:

My cousin Linda (Chenery) Weeks

My cousin Muriel DeLorenzo

My cousin Tony DeLorenzo

My uncle Joseph (Zenon) Pelletier

My aunt Del

My aunt Bea (DeLorenzo) Chenery

My aunt Patricia Tremblay

My aunt Rosie Czarnecki

My uncle Pep (Joseph)

My uncle Armand

My aunt Ann

My aunt Katie

My friend Nancy Doherty

My friend Betty Dyke

My friend Judy Gould

My friend’s son Casey Washburn

My friend’s dad Donald McRae

My friend’s mom Doris Roscoe

My friends Marguerite

My friend Doris

My friend Joanne

My friend Diane Harvey

My friend Joey Medina

Life Has Many Changes and Life Goes On!

Since the publication of "Straight from my Heart: Journeys of Hope, Love and Peace many thing have changed for me. Some are very positive and some not so positive. However, I have always kept the faith and the hope KNOWING that my savior Jesus will always help me through whatever life has tossed my way. My spiritual faith has been my survival. The angels have always been close by and I thank God for them especially my guardian angel, I named Angel.

I left the college that I was working at as a full time LMHC/Academic counselor. I still work part time but with this pandemic corona virus I have stepped back for a while. I fill my time in by taking care of my two adorable nephews. They are Jayden age 4 years old and Dominic a little over a year. They are my life and add joy to my day. My niece Ashleigh and Joshua has included me in their family as a member and I am so grateful. I also have another two nephews Gregory and Jason and a niece Melissa. They are precious and add to my world too.

I lost my best friend, my mom. I love her so much. We were best of pals. She had several small strokes. She always kept her sense of humor until the very end when she had another stroke that left her unable to communicate in anyway. She was 96 years old, I miss her so much. I know she is around me but I miss her physical body and her presence. I miss my mom and my best friend. She will always be by my side.

I lost my dear sister Debbie. She passed away from lung cancer at 61 years of age. She never smoked a day in her life and lived a good healthy life. She never did get to see her grandchildren but she did know that she was going to be a grandmother. Lung cancer is horrible like any other cancer. I miss her so much. She was the so kind, so sweet and ever so caring.

I have had some obstacles in my life which haven’t been great but I am a survivor and making it through with the help of God. I lost most of my hearing in my right ear do to a virus that I got from a very bad cold. It is difficult getting used to hearing with one ear but I am so grateful that I can still hear. I thank God for that. I also got sick and ended up in the hospital for nine days and got diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure and AFIB. AFIB is a heart condition that affects the way the heart pumps. I am on medication that helps. I don’t let this condition stand in my way. I do whatever I have done. I still exercise at a great health club, help my niece and still see my friends, and I continue to write. In other words I keep active. I have always strived to be a conqueror and not a victim. We have that choice.

So life is never perfect and life changes all the time. It is up to us to adjust to the changes good and bad. We live in a changing world and a world that throws out many positive things along with not so positive. Remember keep the faith and Never give up!

Dedicated to my mom,

Anita (Tremblay) DeLorenzo

(May 30th 1923 – September 8th, 2019)

Jesus and Mama Always Loved Me, This I Know

written and sung by Confederate Railroad

Hope is part of the oxygen that keeps us going

on our journey through life.

Jacqui DeLorenzo

If our eyes could not see, how beautiful we would

see the world through our hearts.

Jacqui DeLorenzo

May the angels always carry you on their wings.

Jacqui DeLorenzo

Never give up on your dreams.

Never let anyone tell you that you can’t.

You are the captain of your ship.

Travel wherever you want to go.

Believe in You can!

Remember there is no such thing as I can’t!

Jacqui DeLorenzo

Contents

Life Has Many Changes and Life Goes On!

Author’s Note

Testimonials

Special Thank you

Preface

Acknowledgments

Part 1. Journeys of Hope

Spool 1. Living with Hope

Spool 2. Butterflies Are Free to Fly

Spool 3. The Light of Hope

Part 2. Journeys of Love

Spool 4. Will to Survive

Spool 5. Little Boy Blue

Spool 6. Healing the Pain

Spool 7. Bullying No More

Spool 8. Memories May Find Me (but They’ll Always Be behind Me)

Part 3. Journeys of Peace

Spool 9. As Close to Heaven as It Gets

Spool 10. Afterlife Is Real

Spool 11. Heaven’s Waiting Room

Spool 12. Hello, It’s Me, Kevin

Spool 13. A Friend in Heaven

Spool 14. Surrounded by Angels

Spool 15. Thank You, Heaven

Spool 16. Love Is Everywhere

Author’s Note

I chose to use spool in place of chapter throughout my book because of the significance of my first book and the important role it played in my writing. The threads of hope that I hung on to wove themselves into the thickened spool of thread that helped enlighten me to write this second book:

Straight from My Heart:

Journeys of Hope, Love, and Peace

Testimonials

Jacqui DeLorenzo’s book Straight from My Heart is a beautifully written book of true stories and poetry. It has made me a believer again in heaven and our guardian angels.

Cathy Beliveau, CAN

Jacqui has done it again! Straight from My Heart is an authentic and beautifully crafted compilation of stories of hope intertwined with tender poetry. In her second book, Jacqui updates us on her journey of hope, while sharing others’ inspiring accounts of trauma to triumph. This is not your average self-help book. Instead, it provides the reader with examples of how individuals have suffered profound trauma and loss and how they yet persisted. By the end of this book, you will be shouting from the rooftop, I believe in angels; I am the conqueror!

Jennifer McCarthy, MEd, MS, LMHC

This is truly a book written straight from the author’s heart. Jacqui shares her personal space with her readers and has you asking for more. The stories of the afterlife and her own experiences and guidance will make you a true believer in miracles. A beautiful, uplifting read. Enjoy.

Debra Lynne DeLorenzo-Geary,

Legal Assistant and Photographer

Jacqui DeLorenzo has done it again. Her second book, Straight from My Heart, is chock-full of heartwarming anecdotes and inspiring true stories of people who demonstrate unsinkable spirits in the face of unthinkable circumstances. This is the book to have by your side if you need inspiration to get through your own trying times. Jacqui will convince you to never give up!

Carolyn Bailey, MS, LMHC

Special Thank you

Special thanks to my dear sister Debbie DeLorenzo

Geary (July 26, 1954 – August 26, 2015) for all the love, support

and help she has always given me and for helping me

turn this manuscript into the book it is today, She is truly the best of the best.

Special thanks to my family and friends who contributed their

beautiful stories of their loved ones in Chapter Thirteen

"As Close to Heaven as it Gets"

Cindy McRae

Joanna Alexander

Kathy Williams

Joanne Buckley

Elaine Racki

Carol Kobierski

Diane Harvey

Kerry Washburn

Preface

No matter how hopeless life can seem at times, there is always hope. I was once at that point in my life where I felt little hope. However, with time and help, I found hope, love, and peace. I hope you will find your life changed and filled with much love, hope, and peace by sharing my continued journey and the journey of others.

Since the publication of my last book, A Thread of Hope: A Woman’s Spiritual Journey of Faith from Trauma to Triumph, was in 2007, I wanted to share with you my experiences and my life as it is today. Reaching out to others can make a huge impact on someone’s life. It may very