As
a reviewer of books it is a privilege to write reviews. This one is
special. As I read this book I realized I was peeking into private
personal space. (mine as well as the author’s) As Dr. Groothuis
thinks deeply about his experience and recounts them to us vulnerable
and honest. Sort of like reading someone else's mail. An older
brother helping us clean up the mess we made.
I
am barely acquainted with the author, just a face in the crowd. But
for you dear reader I offer as my review this open letter so that you
may get a glimmer of the same experience I had reading this work of
faith.
Dear
Dr. G,
I
just finished your book, “Walking Through Twilight: A Wife's
Illness--A Philosopher's Lament”. I have to tell you, while reading
your book, I felt like I was walking in your shadow. Although a
shadow it was reflective. Dark yet strangely shimmering. Like when I
put my John Coletrane vinyl on my turntable and it reflects the light
coming in the window and makes it dance on the ceiling as I listen to
“A Love Supreme”.
The
reflections off your shadow leave a trail to follow. You have become
a trailblazer and a guide. It’s not that I have never had a dark
night of the soul, it’s that I have just barely learned to navigate
them. Yet
you are encouraging me not to just navigate them but to navigate them
well. I suppose it is your gift to put into words what others can
only sense. Thank
you.
I
need to tell you what touched me most. You
mentioned the eeriness of lament and how opaque our situations can
be. This description helps, it orients me to normal, or at least the
normal of the lament. Your reflections on Psalm 90 was like a flash
of lightning at night, illuminating the surroundings for just a split
second. As it did I could see my lament wrapped up inside God’s
bigger world. It’s as if “My God, my God why have you forsaken
me” is surrounded in the greater “the steadfast
love of the Lord never ceases”.
Thank
you for this. I have already given a copy to a good friend and
companion in lament. As our generation of baby boomers grow older
lament will be more and more our new normal. I am grateful for this
thoughtful and considerate guide.
Yours
in lament,
rl
