Tag Archives: Grief Memoir

His name, remembered, spoken, and written…

3 minute read

What can I say about today?

April 30, 2026.

Since every day, almost every hour, I think of my beautiful boy, Sam. His name circles my mind, my heart, from back to front, a subtle loop, a recording, a continuous ticker tape, in the background a whirring, clicking, and beeping biotelemetry.

Sam Kassenoff
3/2/98 – 4/30/2007

Today’s not so different from any other day, really. Only a marker in time; nineteen years.

Time keeps on ticking, moving along. Time has taught me how to… It’s dulled my sorrow into a tolerable ache, which I’ve learned to live with and reshape, somehow, into words.

Continue reading “His name, remembered, spoken, and written…”

my book: your review?

3 minute read

My e-book: $4.99 $2.99

My paperback: $11.99

Your review: priceless

To see what others have written: Reviews.

To rate and review Willower: Create a Review.

Continue reading “my book: your review?”

opening pages: about survival

front cover transparent bkgd

Willower: Rewriting Life After Unimaginable Loss was released October 2023. It was hard to finally let go and send my story, which I’d kept hidden for so many years, out into the world. I hope it lands wherever it’s needed most and helps those searching for a story like this to feel less alone in their grief.

I want to say how grateful I am to have worked with Marion Roach Smith, the memoir writing coach who encouraged me and pushed me toward the finish line. And Jessica Hatch, the copy editor who helped me to cross that finish line. I’ve learned so much from both of these brilliant women.

And now: I’m excited to share with you an entire chapter sample—the book’s opening pages: about survival. For more chapter previews, go here.

Continue reading “opening pages: about survival”

Chapter 1. Sam’s heart

3 minute read

in this chapter

So much happens in Chapter 1 Sam’s heart. So I’ve pulled out a few pieces for you to sample. And you can read the rest once your book is delivered (wink wink).

Continue reading “Chapter 1. Sam’s heart”

Chapter 2. Living normally

4 minute read

Willower: Rewriting Life After Unimaginable Loss was published on October 17 (2023). Which, and this wasn’t planned, happened to be Reggie’s birthday (10/17/2003). Reggie who? Reggie Jackson Little Dude, that’s who—Sam’s puppy.

Reggie, Sam’s puppy, 10/17/2003 – 5/25/2021

Funny story: Once, while in Tampa to see a Yankee spring training game, we saw the Reggie Jackson in the hotel lobby. Excited, David said hello to him and then, pointing to the boys and the skinny pigeon-toed Chihuahua standing with them, proceeded to tell Mr. Jackson that we named our dog after him. (Insert head smack emoji here.) I wanted to hide. It was a pretty awkward moment. I mean, if we had named our son after him, but . . . that funny-looking knock-kneed dog?

about this chapter

In Chapter 2. Living normally, we travel to Boston Children’s Hospital (May 2003) after deciding that BCH has the best “picture taker” in the world.

Continue reading “Chapter 2. Living normally”

Chapter 3. Courage

3 minute read

about this chapter

In Chapter 3. Courage we continue living, while trying to conquer our fear, in those years leading up to Sam’s ninth birthday. The theme and the title of this chapter came the fortune cookie Sam opened after eating dinner at our favorite Chinese restaurant:

Courage is not the absence of fear; it is the conquest of it.

Continue reading “Chapter 3. Courage”

Chapter 4. Monday

4 minute read

First, you may be thinking, Why would anybody want to write about the death of their child? It’s certainly not for everyone. But for me, it was the only thing I could do. Over the years, while I was writing this story, or talking with a friend, or a grief therapist, or singing (screaming and crying) at the top of my lungs while driving alone . . . I was also re-learning how to live with these details that are forever etched in my memory.

about this chapter

Chapter 4. Monday is the day (April 30, 2007) when the unthinkable happens.

Continue reading “Chapter 4. Monday”

Chapter 5. Still here

4 minute read

I’ve been processing my son Sam’s death now for several years. You may be seeing/reading this story for the first time, and so it may be shocking or uncomfortable for you. But I hope you’ll be brave and read or share Willower: Rewriting Life After Unimaginable Loss with someone you know who is trying to process their loss.

about this chapter

In Chapter 5. Still here, time, a recurring theme throughout the book, keeps moving on despite what has happened. I hate time for that, for moving only forward, for not stopping and allowing me to go back, to bring Sam back.

Continue reading “Chapter 5. Still here”

Chapter 6. Searching

3 minute read

Here are a few more snack-sized appetizers from my book—so you can get a taste of my writing style. (And by the way, the green boxes with orange text that you see throughout these posts are actual excerpts from my chapters.) Bon appétit!

about this chapter

Chapter 6. Searching is about the pain, the sleep deprivation, and the lunacy that follows loss.

Continue reading “Chapter 6. Searching”

Chapter 7. Rewriting

3 minute read

Note: The featured image you see of Officer Twisdale and Sam over his shoulder was created by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office for their newsletter in which they published part of Sam’s Story.

about this chapter

Chapter 7. Rewriting, as you can tell by its name, is a major theme in the story. It was during a grief counseling session when I got the idea of rewriting my story stuck in my head.

Continue reading “Chapter 7. Rewriting”