Summer M Sterner

Grief to Grateful Summer M Sterner

Grief isn't on our radar until we're in the midst of it. You don't wake up one morning expecting someone so young and full of energy, someone you love and care about so much...to die. But then there it is. The fierce, dark, and consuming storm. Not just the kind that rains. The kind that tears and uproots. We will all have to face one at sometime in our lives. Our storm involved the loss of our son, Aidan, born with Down syndrome. He passed away in a matter of days from the sudden onset of two bacterial infections neither medicine nor we could do anything about. We felt helpless. A hard season of weeping, wandering, praying and grieving followed. Years of counseling. A persistent ache. Statistically we should not have made it. We should not be married at all. But God has a redeeming hope for you-a dawn that follows, revealing unexpected color and beauty. The restoration we experienced in the pages ahead can be yours too. Grief to Grateful is a journal and legacy for our other children, that has helped us revisit and reclaim our hearts. In considering our narrative, we're grateful we've been able to pick-up and make sense of pieces we had forgotten and realized that others might benefit from our story. We believe God will use the insights we've learned along the way to encourage you, not just to stay married in difficulty, but to have a marriage that can weather deep adversity, and thrive in phenomenal ways.