Who I am.

I write about the landscape of grief, nature, and the wisdom of fools. The author of four books, my essays, poems, and reviews have been published in over 50 journals, including in the Huffington Post and Colorado Review. I’ve won the River Teeth Nonfiction Book Award, the Chautauqua and Literal Latte’s essay prizes, and my work has been nominated for four Pushcart Prizes and named a notable by Best American Essays. My account of hiking in Yosemite to deal with my wife’s death, Mountains of Light, was published by the University of Nebraska Press. http://www.markliebenow.com.

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

We Are the One Who Died, and The One Who Grieves

We are a community of shared grief.

We are the wife who died, who could not handle another health problem,
            but we didn’t want him to suffer.
We are the husband who lost his wife in her forties to a heart attack.
            We live on because we can’t let go,
and we won’t give in to grief.

* If you would like to read the rest of this post, let me know and I’ll send it to you. *
          

My essay on the paradigm shift that happens when someone we love dies. Published by The Edge: Holistic Living.

3 comments:

  1. Beautiful, Mark. I'm sick with a sore throat the first time, since Martin died. Makes it all the more obvious, that no one has my back. No one is going to go to the store, make dinner because I want to sleep, or hang out with our beautiful teen boys, when I don't feel up to it.

    Keep writing-

    I guess my continued tears are good. Sometimes I wonder if they will ever stop falling.

    Thank you

    Sheryl

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tears are expression. They are cleansing. They will slow. I have faith in this. And I'll keep writing if you keep reading.

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