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6.06.2016

Book Review: Colors of Goodbye

Sooooooo, it's been quiet here lately, huh? Sorry about that. I got in a little over my head in some other areas of life and had to find my way out of the weeds and back to a better balance. Whew! I made it! I'm back! Sort-of. 

I'm here today to introduce another book review by my dear reader friend, Sandy Baumer. I'll be back officially later this week with a post I hope you'll find encouraging, inspiring and exciting! For today... take it away Sandy! 

Hello everyone!  First things first.  I need you to click over to the Amazon right now and order this book. Colors of Goodbye by September Vaudrey. Go ahead…I’ll wait. 



There are few books I keep locked in a certain part of my heart. That I remember quotes from, I remember certain sentences, I remember every person and I remember the journey each of their lives was taken on. “Colors of Goodbye” is one of those books. 

“Colors of Goodbye is a tale of joy and tragedy in tandem; a profoundly personal memoir from a life forever changed by one empty place at the table.  September Vaudrey takes us to the depths of grief and heights of love in a poignant, raw search to discover whether, despite even the worst of losses, life can be beautiful still.”

September Vaudrey takes us on a journey of tremendous love and pain simultaneously. She tells us the story of the death of her 19 year old daughter Katie, and how each of her other four children and her husband grieved in different ways. September also interweaves the wonderful story of Katie’s life, who was a talented artist, with how they coped with this unspeakable tragedy. September has written a beautiful memoir about journeying through grief. Not hiding from it, but going right through the center of it and facing it head on. The Vaudrey family show us how to stay the course and find the “new normal” when you face a loss. The “new normal” for the Vaudrey family is this:  undaunted joy seasoned by irreversible loss. Both/and. Holding on and letting go.

I will be honest with you. In my 45 years of life, I have not faced a significant loss in my life that has brought me to my knees and shook me to my core. But, unfortunately, I have had friends who have faced the loss of children and parents. I have done the “normal” friend things, feed them, hug them, and pray for them.

After reading this book, I will also make a point to celebrate the life of their loved one any chance I can get. I will ask them out for coffee (when they are ready) and just listen. Listen to them talk about their sweet little boy or their precious elderly father who they have lost. I will listen to them talk about the life they had planned. I will listen. Possibly in the listening, I can pray for God to begin to give them the life and joy that is waiting for them. 

“Colors of Goodbye” has inspired me. Inspired me to find joy in the midst of pain, and to take that joy and spread it around.  To share it with anyone who will listen.  I hope you do the same.

“I want to leave ripples in the lives I leave behind” – Katie Vaudrey, age 15

Thanks, Sandy!! This sounds like such a profound book. We'll have another exciting co-review coming up soon AND my first GIVEAWAY! Get excited! More details on that coming soon!


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