Learn how writing poetry helped Bruce express his grief and find a connection with others.
My guest Bruce Sterling is a writer and poet who earned a degree in psychology and worked in the technology sector for decades. As he compiled his first book of poetry he recognized that a significant number of his verses focused on his grief after the death of both of his parents in a tragic auto accident. Because these poems seem to touch others deeply as well he has published his first poetry book Not Enough: Musings on Grief and is currently writing a second book Stories of Grief and Hope. In this conversation he talks about grief, poetry, lessons learned and connecting with others through our shared experiences of pain. Learn more at Bruce’s website:
This episode includes:
- Bruce’s journey of grief and poetry
- How the organization of his poetry book reflects his personal process with grief
- After a sudden traumatic death, shock happens first, grief begins later
- How Bruce’s process for writing poems includes surrender
- Why poetry is a good medium for expressing the pain of grief
- Grief as a tool for acknowledging previously repressed emotions
- How poetry makes space for the mystery and the unknown
“It wasn’t my parents’ death, but the miracles that came next, that took tragedy and loss and turned it heavenward. I can’t look at all these gifts and synchronicities and think that life is anything less than miraculous; tragic, certainly; wondrous, at times; meaningful, hopefully; but miraculous, even when we’re not looking.”
Bruce Sterling – Stories of Grief and Hope
Links mentioned in this episode:
- February Vigil
- Book: Not Enough: Musings on Grief
- Register here for Laughter Yoga Webinar (now scheduled for March 10, 2121; get the replay if you can’t attend live)
- Sign up for the 2021 online reading group A Year of Reading Dangerously at this link
- Support your local bookstore by buying my books on Bookshop and Indiebound: 7 Lessons for Living from the Dying and The Journey from Ego to Soul
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- Check out the Series I’ve recorded in the past here
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