Interview: One Author’s Walk Through a Grief Journey - Jeanne Takenaka
Contents
Have you walked through a grief journey? I’m sharing an interview with an author who’s walked through grief recently. Edie Melson shares her insights here and in her new book.
I first met Edie at a writer’s conference a number of years ago. She’s fun, engaging, others-oriented and a great writer to boot. I’ve since become a fan of her informative, very-helpful-to-writers blog, The Write Conversation. If you’re a writer, you need to check this out.
Edie loves God passionately and honestly. She is a wife, a mom to three sons, and a grandmother. She is the director for the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference and a multi-published author, both in fiction and nonfiction.
Edie’s written a wonderful series of books, Soul Care for . . . Her most recent book in this series is Soul Care When You’re Grieving, which releases on November 2nd. After reading this book, I can honestly say it is much less a “how-to” manual and much more a unique approach to processing grief in an authentic way. She shares many insights and fresh perspectives on the various aspects of grieving. If you or someone you know is on a grief journey, I can’t recommend this book highly enough.
Now to the interview:
What prompted you to write this book, Edie?
The Soul Care series of books came out of a time in my life when my father was at the end of his journey with Alzheimer’s. My sister and I were supporting my mother as she cared for my dad, and we were all exhausted. I cried out to God, asking Him how I could connect more strongly with Him when I didn’t have any time? He showed me that He can work as strongly in the bits and pieces of time as in the large chunks.
I signed the contract for the Soul Care series of books in 2018, and the publication of the books was the order set up then. The first two books—Soul Care When You’re Weary and Soul Care for Writers, came out in 2018 and 2019, respectively. I began writing Soul Care When You’re Grieving in late 2019. Almost a year later, we lost our precious daughter-in-law.
You share in your book about the tragedy of losing your daughter-in-law in a horrible farming accident. How did God meet you and your family in your grief?
The first thing He did was provide people all over the world to pray for her and for us. Then our faith community swarmed into action, surrounding us with tangible evidence of God’s love. Every need we had was provided before we were even aware we needed it. For me, the most precious time with God during this was the morning I cried out to Him in anger. I accused Him of so many things because I was so devastated. He took all that I poured out and returned it with such tangible love that my broken heart began to turn back to Him.
Interview: One Author’s Walk Through a Grief Journey—Then our faith community swarmed into action, surrounding us with tangible evidence of God’s love. @EdieMelson #griefjourney #soulcarewhenyouregrieving #tellhisstory Click To Tweet
What helped you to keep your faith strong as you navigated that grief?
The biggest thing was reading God’s word. I spent time reading the Bible every morning before I even got out of bed. There is healing and strength to be found in immersing yourself in God’s word.
What are your hopes for this book?
My prayer is that it will help others during their journey of grief. I hope they’ll give themselves the grace they need to grieve the way God designed them to grieve. So often we feel like we’re grieving wrong—too long, too short, too visibly, not visible enough—the truth is we all process loss differently and that is okay.
Interview: One Author’s Walk Through a Grief Journey—I learned that the five stages of grief that everyone talks about—denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance— aren’t really a set process. @EdieMelson #tellhisstory… Click To Tweet
Along those lines, I hope those who read this realize the truth I discovered. I learned that the five stages of grief that everyone talks about—denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance— aren’t really a set process. They’re a list of things that are common to most grieving events. For me personally, I found myself often skipping one stage, like anger, and then waking up months later immersed in rage that lingered. These stages can be helpful only when we realize what we’re going through isn’t unique, it’s a shared experience. What is not helpful is comparing my process to anyone else’s.
What about you? What has been helpful when you’ve walked on a journey of grief? Which Bible verses have spoken the most intimately to you in those times?
P.S. If you would like to order Soul Care When You’re Grieving, here’s the link. I don’t receive anything if you purchase, I just appreciate this book so much I want to share.
About Soul Care When You’re Grieving:
Grief is difficult. We all experience it—and we experience it differently. There is no right or wrong way to face loss, yet many of us feel we could be coping better. Going through loss narrows my world. I used to believe that was my personal experience, but I’ve discovered that limited perspective happens to us all. I’m praying this book helps you break down the barriers created by grief and helps you engage with the world around you.
Each chapter contains devotions, prayers, and creative exercises. The chapters are designated by the opposite of one of the five experiences of grief. It’s far too easy to be tied to the common misconceptions about grief, so by reframing them, we give ourselves more grace as we process loss. Most of all, I pray you learn to embrace your own process of grief and quit judging whether you’re handling things the way they should be handled. God designed each of us uniquely, and that blueprint includes the way we process loss.
Edie Melson is a woman of faith with ink-stained fingers observing life through her camera lens. She’s a writer who feels lost without that device & a reluctant speaker who loves to encourage an audience. She also embraces the ultimate contradiction of being an organized creative. She knows the necessity of Soul Care and leads workshops around the world on staying connected to God. Her numerous books, including the award-winning Soul Care series & reflect her passion to help others develop the strength of their God-given gifts. Her blog, The Write Conversation is recognized as one of the top 100 industry resources. Find her on EdieMelson.com
Connect with Edie:
Come share your story at the Tell His Story linkup. Connect and be encouraged by like-minded friends! #tellhisstory #linkup Click To Tweet
Most weeks, I link up with Grace and Truth, Anita Ojeda, Instaencouragements, and sometimes Let’s Have Coffee. Come join and read more encouraging posts!
Each week we gather here as storytellers, word weavers, and encouragers to make His name known. Our story is God’s story and this small corner of the blogging world, where we come together each Tuesday, needs you. This is a place where poetry, snapshots, prayers, and stories find a safe spot to nod in agreement that what we have to say matters. I am glad you are here and would love to have you join the #TellHisStory community. Add your own encouraging post through the link below. Spread some love by visiting your neighbor and leaving your own encouragement. Click here to read more about the #TellHisStory community and find a button to add to your site.
Each week we gather here as storytellers, word weavers, and encouragers to make His name known. Our story is God’s story and this small corner of the blogging world, where we come together each Tuesday, needs you. This is a place where poetry, snapshots, prayers, and stories find a safe spot to nod in agreement that what we have to say matters. I am glad you are here and would love to have you join the #TellHisStory community. Add your own encouraging post through the link below. Spread some love by visiting your neighbor and leaving your own encouragement. Click here to read more about the #TellHisStory community and find a button to add to your site.
