Enchanted by God; searching for a re-enchanted Christianity

Dear Life

I first saw this book when I was taking Holy Communion to a housebound parishioner before lockdown happened.

Just after I arrived at his home the district nurse arrived to do some procedure, and while I waited he gave me this to look at. You've only got to read the first page or two to know that it's a gem, well worth reading.

Be sure to get in a good supply of tissues, because you will read this and weep. But they are the best kind of tears. Rachel Clarke is a palliative care specialist, and writes movingly about her experiences in training, and now in her work in a hospice. She tells the stories of patients living through a terminal illness, how they and their loved ones face the uncertainties and fears of receiving the diagnosis and prognosis everyone fears. But the emphasis is on living through this, because death is a part of everyone's life experience. Ultimately this is a book full of love, joy, and hope. It's about the wonder and preciousness of life, the importance of love and living life to the full. And it's strangely comforting, with its descriptions of what happens to the body of a dying person, that will reassure and take away a lot of the natural fear we may feel.

#books