Recovering the Self: A Journal of Hope and Healing (Vol. IV, No. 2) April 2012 Recovering The Self is a quarterly journal which explores the themes of recovery and healing through the lenses of poetry, memoir, opinion, essays, fiction, humor, art, media reviews and psychoeducation. Contributors to RTS Journal come from around the globe to deliver unique perspectives you won't find anywhere else! The theme of Volume IV, Number 2 is "New Beginnings"....

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview: #1 Grief is like fear. It feels like being afraid, but for different reasons. It is difficult to take in what others say, and it is hard to want to take it in. It is so uninteresting. Yet I want the others to be about me. #2 Marriage has done wonders for me. I can never again believe that religion is manufactured out of our unconscious, starved desires and is a...

Lament is how you live between the poles of a hard life and trusting God's goodness. Lament is how we bring our sorrow to God-but it is a neglected dimension of the Christian life for many Christians today. We need to recover the practice of honest spiritual struggle that gives us permission to vocalize our pain and wrestle with our sorrow. Lament avoids trite answers and quick solutions, progressively moving us toward deeper worship and trust. Exploring...

It's easy to trust God when things are going our way and the world makes sense. But when suffering strikes--especially seemingly senseless suffering--we are filled with doubt and stunned by events spiraling beyond our control. In the midst of suffering, we often question the very foundation of our faith--our belief in the God who says he loves us. Since our trust and obedience rest on God's character, the questions that life's tragedies force us to...

Recognizing how the need to grieve is anchored in one's capacity to care for someone, this calming guide contends that the act of mourning is healthy-and necessary-following a life-changing loss. The very foundation of attachment is reflected upon, illustrating devotion as both the primary cause of grief and a crucial source of emotional recovery. Exploring the essential principles of love as well as the reasons behind it, this heartfelt handbook...

Have you recently lost your husband? Are there days when you feel so terribly alone-and that no one else could possibly understand? Author Gayle Roper understands. As a recent widow herself, Gayle writes: So who am I now that there's only one place at the table...one pillow with a head dent, one damp towel after a shower. There's only one toothbrush in the holder. The seat is never left up anymore. I can still write Mrs. in front of my name, but I'm...

In May 1951, a car, loaded with bootleg whiskey and traveling without lights, ran a stop sign at a West Texas country crossroads and collided with an ordinary cotton farming family. Five adults died that night, including Elva Edwards' mother, Pearle, her father, Calvin, and her beloved Granny Rogers. One-year-old Elva and her 3-year-old sister somehow survived. The girls grew up on the farm with their Edwards' grandparents whose lives were forever...

This is a story I never intended to tell. It is a somber, excruciating, painful story. After surviving betrayal, deception, and the mysterious death of a loved one, I knew deep in my heart, I needed to write a book about how it is possible to rebuild a life. The incubation period began years ago after my family tragedy. When I looked for guidebooks to help me rebuild a new life infrastructure, I couldn't find any with tips about moving on. I was uncertain...

Cristina Carballo-Perelman, M.D. has been a physician for over 30-years, providing care and comfort to many of her patients as they take their last breath. In her book, The Caretaker of All Souls: An Intimate Interview with Death, Death takes center stage as the commentator of the experiences that she, as a physician, has had with Death throughout her career. The persona of Death is examined as is the role it plays as caretaker of the Soul. This...

Beautifully Broken was born many years prior to the first words hitting the pages of this book. My experience with suicide started as a child with my mother's suicide attempts and continued with the loss of one of my best friends while I was in college. After that loss, my brother attempted suicide and one of my first true loves took his life, and my father also died from suicide. My husband was my strength, and the only way I survived the loss of...