Interreligious collection provides insights on all kinds of grieving

(CNS photo)

A significant loss in life changes people. More than likely it will cause them to grieve, too. Where will this grief lead? "Grieving With Your Whole Heart" suggests that over time people tend to realize that grief changes them for the good.
"Somehow in the midst of sorrow you must begin to remap the world, to reorient to a landscape that has changed dramatically -- whether through the loss of a loved one or job or physical ability or identity," the book states.
People suffer losses of many kinds, as the book's more than 80 brief essays make abundantly clear. There is the loss of physical health or memory. There are painful losses resulting from natural disasters, job loss and the losses that accompany retirement, debilitating injuries or even divorce.
"One of the consistent surprises of working with those going through divorce is how seldom they recognize what they are experiencing as grief," writes the Rev. Carolyne Call of the United Church of Christ.
I must admit that when I hear the word "loss," I tend first to think of the death of someone's family member or good friend. The difficult, typically unwelcome grief journey that begins with a death is well addressed in this book.