The Strongest Bond: A Memoir

Sensitive and shy, with a rich inner world full of golden dreams, Susan spent her childhood relying on the grounding and guidance of her mother's love. But when Susan was just twelve years old, her life was broken apart in a way that would change her forever. Her mother was diagnosed with cancer, and two years later, she left an empty seat at the table, and an empty place in her family that nothing else could fill. Without a center, the family began to change; Susan's relationships with her siblings and her father unraveled and knitted back together in an unfamiliar shape. Bereft, disconsolate, and profoundly alone, Susan navigated adolescence as best she could without her mother's wisdom and comfort...but the ache of that lost love remained with her. For many years, Susan searched for answers, but most of all, she wanted to hear someone say, "I know what you mean. I felt that way too, when my mother died." The years went by. She never heard those words. But now, the feelings and experiences she kept buried for so long have found a voice in this beautiful, transparent, and soul-searching book. This is not just the story of Susan and her mother...it is the lyrical elegy of the world's loss, and the humanity's heartbreak. This is Susan's story, and it is your story.