Read an exclusive excerpt from "When will it stop hurting?": One man's journey through grief by Glenn Cameron

 

Grief is a terrible, all-encompassing thing. And many times, the loss that we are experiencing is one we were not ready for, no matter how much we think we have prepared. Glenn Cameron shares his story of grief in his book When Will It Stop Hurting?. Read an exclusive excerpt before you download your own copy. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour and leave your questions and comments along the way. Best of luck in the giveaway!

Crystle was the love of his life. For thirty-six years they had done everything together. As retirement approached all he could think of was spending even more time with his beautiful wife, growing old together. Just three years earlier they had sold their home in the Toronto area and moved to Niagara in preparation for retirement. Then on her 58th birthday, Crystle was diagnosed with stage four brain cancer. A terminal diagnosis that Glenn never allowed himself to accept. But just eight months later she had succumbed to her illness and Glenn was thrust into a time filled with uncontrolled grief that seemed to almost suffocate him. This is his real life story. He shares the raw emotions and the dark places he visited in his mind. His story will make you laugh and cry. It will makes you cherish your loved ones. You will be uplifted as you follow his path in overcoming grief. His inspirational story will provide comfort and hope to others struggling with grief.

Read an exclusive excerpt:

I searched the internet for the word grief and found definitions at great length that loosely describe grief as an emotional response to loss. That loss may not only be due to the death of a loved one, it can also be the end of a relationship, and while I have never experienced loss due to a broken relationship, to me it seems the grief could be just as intense as it would in death. If a person you have loved is no longer in your life, what does it matter the cause?

Why am I elaborating on the definition of grief? To define the narrow scope of my journey and hence this book. Since I am sharing my personal story, this book will discuss grief as it relates to the loss of a loved one, and more specifically, the loss of a spouse or life partner. I can only share what I know from personal experience. However, I suspect the shroud of grief and its terrible pangs are shared by each of us no matter whence it has come upon us.

That being said, I do hypothesize that not all grief is the same. And I most certainly do not feel we all experience grief in the same way. But what I have discovered is that to make such a statement is somewhat taboo. In my walk with grief, it seemed to me, as I began my attempt to try to understand what grief was, that I was being led to believe that all grief is homogenous. That was simply not my experience, and I quickly found myself becoming very guarded in sharing my true thoughts. I felt oddly pressured to be politically correct by saying that we all experience grief at the same level. It became a common theme provided to me by authors and speakers who ostensibly preferred tiptoeing around the subject. So, I began to tiptoe with them.

To make such a bold statement may seem pious. But my belief, again, comes from my own experience. I lost my father just twenty months before my wife passed away. I love my dad dearly. I have such fond memories with him. He was a pastor in an evangelical denomination. He excelled in his profession and I am very proud to say he is my father. He didn’t just preach hell, fire and brimstone; he ministered to people in their everyday lives. He went into their kitchens when they hurt. Visited them in the hospital when they were sick. He cared for the elderly through regular visitation. He was a very busy man, yet he always made time for his family.

I felt safe. I felt loved. When he passed away, I shed tears and I was sad. But the truth is my life returned to normal very quickly. In July 2016, the passing of my father became my reference for what grief was all about. I would have said that in grief you are sad for a few weeks and then life goes on. Then Crystle passed, and I had an entirely new perspective on grief. Not all grief is the same.

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I grew up in Canada’s east coast and moved to Toronto in my late teens. I was ready to sow my wild oats in the big city. But I met Crystle on a blind date and everything changed. I knew she was the love of my life. I have a business degree from the University of New Brunswick and I have worked in the information technology sector much of my working career. That hardly is credentials for an author, but life makes us all experts, even in areas we may prefer not to hold that title. When Crystle passed my life was forever changed. My grief was so overwhelming I felt I needed to share my story and if even one person is inspired to defeat grief then my writing career will be a success.


Website - https://glenncam.com/

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/626464.Glenn_Cameron

Glenn Cameron will be awarding a $10 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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