Description
Book SynopsisWarrior Mother: Fierce Love, Unbearable, Loss, and Rituals that Heal is the true story of a mother's fierce love and determination, and her willingness to go outside the bounds of the ordinary when two of her three adult children are diagnosed with life-threatening disease.
Trade Review“We have to make art out of what happens to us,’ writes Sheila K. Collins.
Warrior Mother is a testament to how art making, done in a sacred context, can transform tremendous loss. Collins reminds us of the endurance and healing power of love—especially a mother’s love.”
—Elizabeth Jarrett Andrew, author of
Writing the Sacred Journey:The Art and Practice of Spiritual Memoir “Just as love survives death, so too does spirit supplant mere survival. Collins has faced a parent’s worst fears and learned to still dance in their wake. Warrior Mother is a mother’s manual of profound honesty, hope, and healing.”
—Marc Nieson, author of
Schoolhouse: A Memoir in 13 Lessons “With courage and grace, Warrior Mother generously invites the reader on a heartbreaking journey, with equal doses of candor and sensitivity. Admirably free of self-pity, physically and emotionally precise, this story is bound to enlighten others who have grieved and healed from the loss of a child.”
—Sarah Saffian, author of
Ithaka: A Daughter’s Memoir of Being FoundTable of Contents Contents
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Part One
Coming Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Getting to Yes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Support for a Mother's Yes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Initiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Medicine Women . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Life upon the Wicked Stage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
To Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Spring Shadows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
The Dying Room . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Celebrations of Ken . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Part Two
Reacting to the News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Dreams and the Kindness of Strangers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Preparations for a Healing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
To Brazil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Beyond the Ends of the Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Extremely High-Tech Medicine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Bone Marrow Summer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
One Hundred Days Plus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Dancing on the Edge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Saying Good-Bye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Midwifery Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Ashes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
The Grandmother Ceremony . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
