A Circus of Brass and Bone
Page 37
How does your sense of eternal timing affect how you live your life on a daily basis?
If you knew you only had six months to live, what would you do differently?
5. My goal is to empower my loved ones to move on.
Good relationships are a lot easier to grieve, and then to be able to move forward. I want my husband, my family, and friends, to be able to grieve (yes, I hope they mourn me!), but then to walk forward without anger or hurt or guilt that keeps them from enjoying life and allowing other relationships to fulfill the needs that I filled. So, if life is shorter than I knew, I will focus on what I need to do to help those who will miss me—but who have a life left to live!
Do you have “unfinished business”?
What can you do about it now?
Conclusion:
For several years, Dave and I were part of a team of four couples who shared deeply about their marriages with participating couples during Marriage Encounter weekends. The older couple on our team shared on the very difficult topic of death, thinking of their own death and its effect on their spouse. Oliver and Elizabeth’s talk brought tears to many an eye and modeled a way to share, even about the prospect of dying, with one’s spouse. While we shared other difficult topics, we did not present that one. While it’s a topic no one wants to think might actually happen (me included), no matter what the diagnosis is, the process of thinking “what if I’m going to die?” has been good.
What do you think about your own death?
Acknowledgments
To my supporters:
Without readers like you, this story would never have existed. It’s been a privilege to travel with you.
Peter Akrill * Brenda Anderson * Hannah Barnett * John Bennett * Marisa Brandt * Gloria Brehm * J. Buell * Ben Cragg * Ben Doom * Margaret Della Rocca * Pamela Dyer-Bennet * Leah Eads * Chad Elstad * Angie Endo * Elizabeth Fallon * Paul Fischer * Bosley Gravel * Andre Guirard * Barbara Hobbes * Michael Hunter * Betty Janzen * Christopher Janzen * Lindsay Kleinman * Christopher Knall * Tracy LaChance * Lynna Landstreet * Christine Lloyd * Alice Marks * Cali Mastny * Jonathan Matzke * Jessica Miller * Adele Murray * Roxane Murray * Katie Nave * John Nickerson * Renee Perry * Jessica Reisman * Brad Roberts * Deborah Rowan * Rosemary Sasse (and family!) * Tesla Seppanen * Vaughan Stanger * Charles Stevens * Patrick Sullivan * Margaret Taylor * Robert Tienken * Pablo Virgo * Chad Valentine * Richard Walters * Cathy Williamson * Tonya Wershow * Genevieve Woodward * Conrad Zero
Table of Contents
Description
Title Page
Copyright
Table of Contents
Author’s Note
1 Everyone Dies
2 The Great Boston Pyre, Part I
3 The Great Boston Pyre, Part II
4 Who's Running the Show?
5 The Harvest
6 How to Be a Clown
7 A Stranger Comes to Town
8 The Peculiar Case of the Fortune Teller's Veil, Part I
9 The Case of the Fortune Teller's Veil, Part II
10 What the Watchers Saw
11 A Hive of Scum and Villainy
12 Monkey Business
13 The Importance of Apples
14 Blood and Bone
15 Hail the Heroes
16 The Equestrienne's Worst Fear
17 A Small Favor
18 The Price of Chocolate
19 A Winning Argument
20 Hostages to Fortune
21 The Killing Ground
22 The Final Reckoning
Epilogue
Also by Abra SW
Extras
Bonus Story
What Happens Next
Cast of Characters
Glossary
The Story Behind the Story
Essay: You Might Not Have to Die
(With Discussion Questions)
Acknowledgments