Who am I without him?
Posted in: Military Widows, Women's Topics
“Vinnie was gone from this life with us—gone. We were supposed to say, ‘I’ll see you later,’ but it sure felt like ‘good-bye’ to me… There was a short-lived crowd of friends to comfort us, but a few weeks later, the loneliness set in. There were fewer phone calls; the grandchildren and the girls went back to school and work. Friends and other family members returned to their families. I found myself so unexpectedly alone.
“It felt like I was suddenly standing in a large auditorium once filled with people who were evacuated while I made a quick trip to the restroom.”
Who Am I Without Him?
This excerpt from Gail Ruth Peterson’s book “Who Am I Without Him?” reveals the transparency in her writing. Gail’s book isn’t just a story of her journey of loss, but is a self-help book written for widows or anyone who is struggling.
Gail’s journey through widowhood and her desperate clinging to God in the absence of her husband led her on a desperate search to understand how God could be the Husband He describes for us in Isaiah 54:5. The third part of the book unpacks the names of God in this powerful verse, opening up the promises God has given us.
Gail and her husband, Vinnie, were not in the military and this book does not address the complex issues facing a gold-star wife. But it will help her on the journey to finding hope, or finding hope again in God.
More information?
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Gail and Nita Montgomery-Clary have also written a booklet with lists of what to do and what can be expected for the widowed, “Survival Guide for the Journey of Widowhood.”