Wish You Were Here

December 12, 2011
The death of a spouse is never easy; Joan Didion’s precise and vulnerable reflection on it has prompted a growing chorus from other writers. When that spouse is in the prime of life, the devastation is even more profound. Welborn, popular author and Catholic commentator, pours out her struggles, doubts, and pain after losing her husband, Michael, to a heart attack. This tragedy left her, in midlife, as a single mother of two young children. The author is known for her writing about the Catholic faith, which is typically clear and direct. This is probably her most vulnerable work to date, and she does not hesitate to express the deep sadness that prompted faith questions. She decides to travel with her children to Sicily five months after Michael’s death while still wrapped in the hazy fog of grief. The journey helps her reflect deeply on her joyous and painful memories, thus opening up the possibility of some healing. This story is very personal, but it will satisfy anyone looking to work through his or her own grief and loss. Particularly moving is Welborn’s account of going through her husband’s belongings to decide what to keep as “strong relics” and what to give away. This is a demanding task, but the author injects a hint of spirituality into this exercise that seems to indicate a small step forward in hope.

December 1, 2011
Catholic author and blogger Welborn's (Listening to God with Blessed John Paul II, 2011, etc.) part travelogue, part family memoir written in the year following her husband's sudden death in 2009. Five months after the fatal heart attack of her husband, Michael, the author impulsively took a trip to Sicily with her children. They traveled from their home in Alabama in part because of Catholicism's roots in Italy, where Welborn revisited biblical and personal experiences of hope and sorrow. She tethers her musings on religion with family vignettes and the longing for the quotidian details of their former life, such as Michael's Saturday excursions with their sons to Sam's Club for free food samples. Welborn's directness is sometimes superfluous ("Dungeons are, of course, dark"), but her honesty, occasional humor and willingness to explore her contradictory emotions make her an engaging narrator. Instead of feeling sorry for herself and her children, she forged ahead, exploring a country had never visited. In a rental car, the family traveled from town to town, visiting churches and monuments. In lieu of writing scenes, however, Welborn summarizes conversations and encounters. This makes the book feel more like a diary than a structured story, but her optimism and unwavering belief in the power of prayer give this memoir a cohesive theme. Not especially illuminating, but this book may appeal to Christians interested in personal stories of finding hope after loss.

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