Four years ago, when my beloved spouse John died, I was utterly unprepared for what was about to happen. At first, I diagnosed my spiritual experiences as illnesses and dismissed John’s after-death communication as wishful thinking. Fortunately, our friend Sandi sent me a book that affirmed, clarified, and assured me that every spiritual thing I had experienced and witnessed since John had died had actually happened. The book is called: Permission to Mourn: A New Way To Do Grief by Tom Zuba (2014).

Tom wrote his open-hearted, open-minded, open-spirited book based on all the things he paid close attention to when his daughter died, again when his wife died, again when his son died, and then several thousand more “agains” as he embarked on his life purpose of accompanying others through explorations of what he calls “new ways of grieving.”

Tom writes, “When she takes her last breath. When he leaves his body. We leave. Too. This physical plane. For a time. To be with them. Where they are now. And the dance begins. Between both worlds. Where all things are possible” (Zuba, 2014).

From Tom’s perspective, the love story John and I had been living for four decades did not need to end, and, in fact, had not ended. The only part of John that had died was his physical self. His love was still very much alive. And, according to Tom, John was doing everything he possibly could to let me know I was still able to accompany him on his journey. We could continue to be together for a few days, a month, a year, several years, or even the rest of my life.