Learn about a beautiful memoir co-written by friends whose correspondence helped them both navigate a year of overwhelming loss and grief.

My guests today are Christina Holbrook and Jane Flynn, co-authors of a shared memoir from a year when they were both confronting loss and grief–the diagnosis a glioblastoma brain tumor and the death of a child by suicide. Through a series of emails the two long-term friends shared not only their grief but also the little moments of life’s wonder and joy. They discuss their newly released book Antiphon: A Call and Response in a Year of Grief and Renewal and how writing together helped them navigate overwhelming grief while offering support to one another. Learn more at the website:

jane-flynn.com

Get the book here

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

The long trajectory of friendship between Chris and Jane
Their personal grief that led to a year of email correspondence
Why they decided to share their writings in Antiphon
The waterfall metaphor for grief and how it applies to each of their stories
How writing helps us express complex and painful emotions
Why sharing our pain lightens the burden for both parties
How writing about the ordinary events of a day helps us stay in the present moment
The little joys that are present even within deep grief

Links mentioned in this episode:

Latest post on Substack: Using AI to Talk to Children About Grief
What Really Matters Podcast
View my Patreon tier for Soul Supporters and receive extra reflections as a special bonus
NEW Gift Guides for Caregivers, People Receiving Care, and People Who are Grieving
Get my two newest books!! Stories from the Dark Night and The Tao of Death
Get EOLU Podcast Merch here
Conversations on Death with ChatGPT – Audiobook here; Print Book here
Leave me a message by email: kwyattmd@comcast.net, Twitter, Facebook or Instagram
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 Souloin the team at Patreon.com/eolu and receive free gifts like the “Mind if we talk about death?” mini-poster or Love Your Life sticker or coffee mug. PLUS get our regular bonuses: the monthly EOL News Update, monthly What to Watch recommendations, Behind the Scenes Bonus content, and automatic access to A Year of Reading Dangerously!
Buy me a coffee
Donate on Paypal

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu. And thanks to everyone who has bought me a coffee or made a donation on Paypal, especially Austyn Wells! Your contributions make all the difference and ensure this podcast stays ad-free.

Spies among us? OpenAI Atlas, Veo 3.1, Vibe Coding Gemini, Claude Skills and more