Many of you know I’ve been working on a memoir over the past several years. Although I didn’t set out to write a book in those early years after my husband’s death, I had a sense of the kind of book I wished I could find—something that might reassure me that I was not alone in my struggles.
I didn’t want a book outlining the stages of grief, nor did I want reassurances that God would take care of me. I could find those messages in church. What I wanted was to read about someone else’s grief journey—the emptiness, forgetfulness, overwhelming responsibility, anxiety, and even hair loss. Something to confirm I was normal.
Back then, I wrote often because I didn’t know what else to do with the grief. It came out in pieces—journal entries, blog posts, thoughts scribbled on the back of envelopes or junk mail. Writing became a way to make sense of a life that had suddenly changed.
Over time, those words became something I could shape and hold.
Now, nineteen years later, they have taken on a new form as a memoir similar to the one I searched for in those early years: Keeping Pace: A Grief Journey Measured in Miles.
The book is about loss, motherhood, and the slow, uneven process of finding your footing again after life changes in ways you never expected. Running is woven through it, but the miles were never really the whole story.
The book has now been out in the world for not quite a month, and the early responses have touched me deeply. Readers have reached out to say they felt seen in these pages, or that the story helped them better understand grief and what it can look like behind closed doors.
“Keeping Pace isn’t only for a runner or someone experiencing grief, but for anyone looking for a perspective of hope and perseverance.” — Mimi6
Keeping Pace is now available on Amazon or you can request a copy be ordered by your favorite bookstore using ISBN 979-8-9954229-3-8.