Only Spring: On Mourning the Death of My Son - Softcover

Livingston MD, Gordon

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1569243514 ISBN 13: 9781569243510

Publisher: Balance, 2005

Synopsis

The loss of a child is every parent's most unspeakable fear. Gordon Livingston survived that tragedy not once but twice in a 13-month period, losing one son to suicide and another to leukemia. Only Spring, based on the journal he began keeping when the family received six-year-old Lucas's diagnosis, traces the excruciating ordeal of witnessing his child's courageous battle and the agonizing cycle of faith lost and hope regained. As a memorial, Only Spring will introduce you to a remarkable child whose legacy of hope and love can enrich each of us. As a portrait of survival, it will infuse us with the strength and faith to confront the most profound challenges in our lives.

About this title

About the Author

Gordon Livingston, MD, a graduate of West Point and the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine who was awarded the Bronze Star for valor in Vietnam, was a psychiatrist and writer who contributed frequently to the Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, and Baltimore Sun. His books include Only Spring; Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart; And Never Stop Dancing; How to Love; and The Thing You Think You Cannot Do.

GordonLivingston.com

Review

A poignant account of an anguishing life-changing experience -- Publishers Weekly

An enduring monument to his beloved son--and a permanent addition to the literature of mourning. -- San Francisco Examiner

Anyone who has mourned the death of a beloved child will take comfort from Gordon Livingston's unsparing but ultimately heartening narrative of loss, grief, and healing -- Nancy Mairs, author of Ordinary Time

Beautifully written, Only Spring is a deeply moving and inspiring testimonial. -- Jerome Frank, Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry, Johns Hopkins University

Day by day, Only Spring takes us along the arduous path that comes with the loss of a child. There is no way around this dreadful, aching grief, but as Gordon Livingston demonstrates, what we learn by going through it is the deepest, purest form of love -- Elizabeth Mehren, author of Born Too Soon and After the Darkest Hour

Don't wait for a tragedy to teach you about the preciousness of life and love. Let Lucas's life and Only Spring be your teachers. -- Bernie Siegel, M.D., author of Love, Medicine, and Miracles

Like explorers before him, Livingston charts his terrible journey through grief, properly humbled by its unrelenting terrain. He rages, he questions, he mourns--all with brave honesty. -- Anne McCracken and Mary Semel, editors of A Broken Heart Still Beats: After Your Child Dies

This book has the power of a sledgehammer and the tenderness of the saddest love story. Be prepared to cry your heart out and learn about coping, about strength, and about hope -- Ben Bradlee, former executive editor, Washington Post

This extraordinary book will truly haunt the reader with the places that the author goes in his mind and soul in response to the harshness of his fate. -- Frank Conroy, director of the Iowa Writers' Workshop and author of Body and Soul

Edition details

• Publisher: Balance
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 1569243514
• ISBN 13: 9781569243510
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 256