Transitions

One Woman's Reflections

How many changes do we go through in our lives? How many times are the roadmaps wrong, and we find ourselves taking off on new trajectories, with a destination but no clear idea how to get there?

Losing a spouse is certainly one of those times. The first half of this collection, An Expected Death, takes a look at one turn in my road. It wasn't a surprise. Michael had Parkinson's, and we knew his death was approaching. But my reactions – grief, yes, but also bewilderment and release – those surprised me.

The second section of the book is a miscellany, from the cheerful whimsy of "Bee Magic" to a craving for darkness in the lead-up to Yule in "The Dark Times". There are brushes with philosophy and spirituality, but not, I hope, with a heavy hand.

And you will find dives into pure silliness, such as the two wordplay poems, "Amok" and "Aghast".

No one's life is free of challenges, nor should it be. Overall, however, my life is a happy and rewarding one. I wish the same for you, and that you might find something that resonates in this collection. Something that brings on a laugh, or a reflection… or better still, a thought – "I can do better than that!" – followed by the acquisition of paper and pencil (laptop?) and the birth of a new poem to reflect your own, beautiful self.