Authors: Delle Chatman, William Kenneally
ISBN-13: 9780879462246, ISBN-10: 0879462248
Format: Paperback
Publisher: ACTA Publications
Date Published: May 2003
Edition: (Non-applicable)
Adult children, regardless of whether they are in their twenties or sixties or somewhere in between, often need to do much more than make the funeral arrangements. Intertwined with the grief process are many personal concerns that surface and need to be addressed.
Whether the adult child was quite close to the deceased parent or rather distant, whether the parent's death was sudden or came after a long illness, many powerful feelings and memories arise when a parent dies. Adult children must deal with the immediate loss plus unresolved issues from the past, the new shape of their family, the reality of their own identity and mortality, and the relevance of religious beliefs and values.
The Death of a Parent: Reflections for Adults Mourning the Loss of a Father or Mother is filled with stories of people who have lost a parent and how they dealt with the reality of that event. Eighteen stories divided into eight sections touch on a wide range of emotions and situations related to grief, loss and moving on with one's life in a healthy manner. A spiritual reflection concludes each section.
Introduction: the test of faith | 9 | |
Taking care and letting go | 15 | |
When they just up and die | 16 | |
Praying for them to live, praying for them to die | 19 | |
No more hugs | 23 | |
Losing your very best friend | 24 | |
The last view | 28 | |
Each of us mourns a different parent | 30 | |
All this stuff! | 35 | |
They can't take it with them | 36 | |
A keepsake or junk? | 39 | |
The family tree loses a branch | 45 | |
Losing a generation | 46 | |
Who's going to be Grandma now? | 53 | |
When it wasn't all love and kisses | 61 | |
They lived together but died apart | 63 | |
Mourning the parent you had and the one you'll never have | 68 | |
They never stop being your parents | 75 | |
Get on with your life | 83 | |
Reminded of your own mortality | 84 | |
Get up, get over it | 91 | |
Now who am I? | 97 | |
To forgive but not forget | 98 | |
Will the real me please stand up? | 101 | |
Dare I live a happier life than my parents? | 106 | |
The eternal perspective | 113 | |
Their journey | 114 | |
Conclusion: the legacy of faith | 121 | |
Acknowledgments | 123 |