Seasoned

Tom Zink was born in a blizzard in 1947, a child of winter. Seasoned: A Memoir of Grief and Grace is the story of Tom’s unwitting grief journey of five decades that begins when his older brother Steve is hit by a car and killed while on the paper route the two boys shared. It’s the story of a conservative German Lutheran family and the ways in which the parents and surviving children protect each other in loss with a silent acceptance that does not serve them in the long run. Tom buries his grief along with his brother so he can carry on with his life. His career after high school takes him around the world, across the country, and back again.


It is only after Tom is married and a father of two teen-aged sons that, in a moment of profound grace, he realizes the depth and importance of his loss. His faith and new-found desire as an adult to process Steve’s death take Tom full circle back to his brother’s grave. But this is not merely a story of grief and recovery; it is also a tender and lighthearted look at humor and laughter, winning and losing, and doubt and faith.