"you can heal your heart"

[orleans]

"finding peace after a breakup, divorce, or death" by louise l. hay & david kessler

"grieving is challenging, but it is our thoughts that often add suffering to our pain. we hope that this book will expand your awareness and thinking around loss to include love and understanding. our intention is for you to feel your grief fully without getting stuck in the sorrow and suffering." (pp ix)

"grief is not a condition to be cured but a natural part of life. spirit does not know loss; it knows that every story begins and every story ends, yet love is eternal. our hope is that the words on these pages offer you comfort and peace throughout your journey." (pp ix)

"a broken heart is also an open heart. whatever the circumstances, when you love someone and your time together ends, you will naturally feel pain. the pain of losing a person you love is part of life, part of this journey, but suffering doesn't have to be. although it's natural to forget your power after you lose a loved one, the truth is that after a breakup, divorce, or death, there remains an ability within you to create a new reality." (pp. xvii)

"even when life ends, there is a rhythm. it is sad, of course, because you want more time with your loved one--that's only natural. but there are only two requirements for a complete life: a birth day and a death day. that's it. we all arrive in the middle of the movie, and we leave in the middle of it. we want to hold on to the connection of our loved one who died; we want to keep our memories...and we can eventually release the pain." (pp xxi/xxii)

~~~~~~~~~~

i began reading this book today don't want to put it down. i skipped a divorce chapter but read about relationship loss, death, and other types of loss. there is also a chapter on the loss of a pet.

i feel as if i have already been pulling out of the pain of my grief--it has taken so long! i am not sure how i would have responded to this while in my darkest hours or if it would have helped or not. it might have. in a sense it is giving me the opportunity to see various types of loss from a different perspective--a less painful perspective.

i just checked on worldcat dot org and i see there are not a lot of libraries that have this book yet (it was published on feb. 4th). but you could always request they purchase it like i did. i was told since my library has a number of books by louise hay there shouldn't be a problem getting this one for the collection.

i also just noticed a few reviews people wrote about it (put up on worldcat but from goodreads dot com so here is the link)
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18051508-you-can-heal-your-heart

i just wanted to share this with all of you. maybe it will be of some help.

[Uben]

1. I should probably read this....

...but I'm not a reader. I haven't read a whole book in thirty years. I do believe I am on the downhill side of my grief, though. I don't really feel ready to let someone into my heart, but I am open to giving it a try if the right woman comes around. I never thought I could exist as a single, but I am learning...reluctantly.
Most people would feel blessed to have what I have at this stage of life, but it's hard to enjoy without a partner. I'm an ole country boy who could exist as a minimalist if I needed to because I do not measure happiness by wealth, I measure wealth by happiness. It feels as though I am waiting for something, but what? I guess when I find the answer to that question, I'll know.

[PasadenaTrudy]

2. Thanks for posting this

I just downloaded a sample of it on my Kindle. It's been three yrs since losing my mom and sister, and it's still painful. Plus, I recently turned 50, dealing with the menopause crap...not a fun time!