we LOVE each other

About the Book

we LOVE each other is a non-denominational healing journal for grieving children, 9 years old and older, whose parent has died. Children discover for themselves that their parent’s body died and their parent’s love survived. Just for them.

Funeral Directors, Counselors and Bereavement Professionals will appreciate we LOVE each other for numerous reasons, among them, we LOVE each other: Supports grieving children with a mature concept of death.

Acknowledges the reality of physical death and magical thinking while affirming the reality of continuous emotional bonds.

Incorporates the dual-process model of grief. Loss-oriented coping is supported by remembering life with the deceased. Restoration-oriented coping is supported by helping the child construct a new sense of self and a new relationship with the deceased in the present and in the future.

Creates a safe space for intuitive and instrumental grieving. Children can express their grief emotionally and / or physically by working through their journal.

Serves as a linking and bridging object. The completed journal symbolizes the past, present and future relationship between the child and their deceased parent.

Allows children the flexibility to work with their grief, and their journal, in stages and over time. This complements the “short - feeling span” common in children and the dynamic process of grief and mourning itself. It also compliments weekly, or drop-in, sessions with bereavement professionals.

Illustrates the concept of non-corporeal continuation by emphasizing the survival and continuation of love between the child and their deceased parent.

Reflects the knowledge and expertise of a Certified Thanatologist

Supportive families and friends will appreciate we LOVE each other for numerous reasons, among them, we LOVE each other:

Emphasizes the message that “love always survives.”

Functions as a storybook, photo album, art book and journal. This encourages children to be “hands-on” as they take a lead in their own mourning process. It also provides diverse pathways to healing.

Honors the benefits of ritual and encourages children to tell their own story in their own voice.

Offers an opportunity for grief to serve as an intimate catalyst for personal growth … eventually… over time.

Creates a family keepsake and provides continuity within a family for generations.

Serves as a unique gift expressing authentic respect and concern.

Includes simple directions for working through the journal.

Changes to “What are Readers saying about we LOVE each other?

“Skillful grief support works to overcome denial of the reality of death while affirming the reality of the continual emotional bonds. Just because someone is dead does not mean that the emotional relationship with that person is over. This book does a good job of saying that it is love that survives, not the literal parent.” Les Morgan, President, Growth House, Inc.

“This book is a compelling, heartfelt story. It looks like a book but, when read and used, it will become a lasting keepsake for any child who has experienced the loss of a loved one.” Larry Dawalt, M. Div., Director of Spiritual and Grief Care Services at Hospice and Palliative Care Charlotte Region

“Discussing death, especially a parent’s death, is difficult. This book gives a sense of comfort and ease for that discussion. I am sure children of all ages, and parents, will truly enjoy and appreciate this wonderful book.” Linda M. Givens, M.D. Pediatric Associates

“As a school psychologist, I have used this book first-hand with elementary school children. It improves their functioning and calms their souls. I recommend this resource wholeheartedly.” Thomas Hubbert, MACP, CAS Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools

“Personally and Professionally, I endorse we LOVE each other. In a simple and genuine “hands-on approach,” we LOVE each other provides reassurance to a child that the bond of love that they share with their deceased parent will always be there. we LOVE each other is a valuable tool for older children, adolescents and teens. This is a useful application of love’s permanence. Rightfully so, that permanence should bring comfort to a grieving child.” Patrick Ashwood, Ph. D. Professor Social Science, Hawkeye Community College, Certified Thanatologist

“I just love this book! I have used it with my middle school’s grief support group for the last three years and will continue to use it for years to come. It is a great resource for students, parents, teachers, and counselors because students are able to work through their grief in a way that is personalized to them as individuals. It is a MUST buy!” Marie Delaney, Counselor Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Counselor of the Year 2008 - 2009, Piedmont International Baccalaureate Middle School, National School of Excellence

“When my grandmother died, the funeral home gave my kids a calendar. Giving them a copy of we LOVE each other would have been much more authentic, meaningful and personal.” LMZ Songwriter and parent

About the Author

About The Author

Julie M&M’s personal experiences with bereavement, grief and mourning were the catalyst behind her most recent professional endeavors. For Julie, knowledge has delivered both power and comfort. Her most painful, and transformative, experiences with grief include her mother-in-law’s death, her grandmother’s death, her son’s paralysis and her family‘s ongoing transformation.

Over the years, she’s also “lost” jobs, a few opportunities, a friend, her sense of identity, direction and style; but rarely her appetite. Each loss engaged the dynamic processes of grief and mourning which eventually (with a heavy emphasis on eventually) began to open doors for honesty, courage and change. Like the rest of us, as she was going through these processes, Julie mistakenly thought she had just become incapable of rational thinking, trusting herself and finding the right wine to compliment Double Stuffed Oreos. Ignorance really isn’t bliss. (Neither is anticipatory grief, cognitive grief or survivor’s guilt … but at least you know what you’re dealing with!)

Julie’s professional highlights include certification as a facilitator/master facilitator for five national / international training organizations. She has also worked as a manager, vice president and director in the non-profit and corporate sectors. Her BS Degree was earned at The University of New Orleans (Go Privateers!). In December 2008 Julie earned her Certification in Thanatology, through The Association of Death Educators and Counselors.

In addition to delivering we LOVE each other’s message, “love always survives,” Julie is raising the awareness of grief’s role in the lives of caregivers. Especially those caregivers supporting family members with Spinal Cord Injuries. Additionally, Julie will facilitate grief workshops in 2010. Currently, customized presentations are available for organizations and businesses around the globe. Just make sure Map Quest is involved!

Julie is inspired and regularly humbled by the resiliency, strength and antics of her family: Cosmo, Jonathan, Nicholas and Isabella.