PRO CONNECT
Lindsey Rogers-Seitz is an author, speaker, attorney and mental health advocate. On July 7, 2014, tragedy befell her family when her husband forgot to take their fifteen-month-old son to daycare, unknowingly leaving him in the back seat of their car all day where he passed away from hyperthermia.
Nine years following her son’s death, Lindsey felt a calling to share her debut memoir, in order to shed light on her journey through tragedy and grief, which forced her to wrestle with such universal concepts as spirituality, forgiveness, love and self-acceptance. Lindsey artfully weaves in her personal experiences with manic depression and the mutual support and love found throughout her marriage, in order to destigmatize mental illness in society and help others “find the light” and shed the burden of suffering in silence and alone.
“Rogers-Seitz’s memoir leads the reader through the murky depths of a psyche confronted with unthinkable tragedy. Her approach to the material borders on the poetically abstract while retaining a clear sense of meaning … Acutely and emotionally observant, the author possesses a rare ability to pinpoint and convey the debilitating emotions and sensations associated with intense grief … a profoundly moving debut that may offer solace to others grieving the loss of a child. Expressive, courageous writing that wrests insight from the depths of grief.”
– Kirkus Reviews
Following the death of her child, Rogers-Seitz searches for hope in this debut memoir.
The author’s 15-month-old son, Ben, died when his father forgot to drop him off at day care, leaving him in a swelteringly hot car. The author, a lawyer who had struggled with mental illness for much of her life, describes her slow, “meticulous unraveling” that followed. Two months after Ben’s death, Rogers-Seitz sought out the “purity and peace” of Colorado with the hope of finding her “way back to Ben.” The author recounts how her journey turned her into an “experimenter”; experiences during a reiki session suggested the possibility that there could be a “pathway” to Ben, which in turn led her to meditation. The breakthroughs she experienced following this practice allowed her to feel “the beauty of being alive,” a sense of forgiveness, and a reconnection with God. Rogers-Seitz’s memoir leads the reader through the murky depths of a psyche confronted with unthinkable tragedy. Her approach to the material borders on the poetically abstract while retaining a clear sense of meaning: “My mind fell out of itself when I finally heard the words ‘He didn’t make it.’ ” Acutely and emotionally observant, the author possesses a rare ability to pinpoint and convey the debilitating emotions and sensations associated with intense grief: “My body is lead; I am glued to the ground. I am becoming the ground and the stucco wall behind me. It is scratching my back. I am lost.” The narrative arc of the memoir from darkness to light is emphasized by an effervescence that enters the prose when Rogers-Seitz finds hope through meditation: “A pinpoint light. I concentrated on the luminescence. I’ll call it my angel, I thought. My angel is light.” This memoir may not resonate with metaphysical skeptics, as the author’s road to hope is founded on a firm belief in the spiritual realm. However, this remains a profoundly moving debut that may offer solace to others grieving the loss of a child.
Expressive, courageous writing that wrests insight from the depths of grief.
Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9798987601532
Page count: 282pp
Publisher: Wellness Writers Press
Review Posted Online: April 8, 2023
THE GIFT OF BEN: LOVING THROUGH IMPERFECTION: Firebird Book Award, 2023
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