How do you come back and thrive after your husband dies four days after you are laid off from a job that was supporting your family?
It’s not easy, but I did it, and my new book, Willful Evolution: Because healing the heart takes strength, shows how. My hope is that it will inspire others to get stronger, too.
In 2010, I was laid off from my full-time job as a communications specialist in a hospital while I was on a family medical leave, taking care of my husband in his last days. I heard my boss tell me my position had been eliminated as I stood on my front steps; Ed lay in a hospital bed in my living room just inside the door. He died four days later. I had no income. No partner, and two teenaged children to raise.
I told the story of that devastating loss in my first memoir, Divine Renovations, which was published in 2011. Willful Evolution is a sequel, and it is poignant, inspiring, and at turns, downright funny. The book shows how I reinvented myself, building not one but two successful businesses and otherwise turning vulnerability into strength.
Willful Evolution offers stories of my travels to far-away places, shows me meeting some wacky men while online dating, and also lets readers see how I used yoga, exercise, and adventure to gain physical and emotional strength.
My book is about wrestling fear, building and repairing relationships, and finally growing up—in my mid-fifties.
Think Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert because the book touches on travel and love.
Think Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle because I write about empowerment and metamorphosis. I show it more than tell it.
Think Daring Greatly by Brené Brown because so many of the moves I made involved daring, pushing myself to do things that frightened me.
My book is as motivating, amusing, and powerful as these works. It’s available in my shop and as an ebook on Amazon.
My hope is that people who read my book will find new strength in their own lives, take risks, set new goals, and reinvent themselves!
If you read it, I feel confident something will resonate and make you feel creative and inspired.
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