Few events in life are as painful as the death of a spouse. A new book, Climbing Out: An Adventure in Rediscovering Life After Loss, is a true story about a Canadian woman’s journey to cope with the sudden death of her husband.
Good friends Robin L. Flanigan and Bonnie Thies love a good hike. There’s something about the trails and scenery along the way that they know is good for your mood and your mind. Something Thies badly needed after the tragic death of her husband Bill in 2005.
“He was cutting a tree on our property and a branch came down and killed him,” said Bonnie Thies of Canadice. “I am the one who found it in the forest.”
The first thing Thies says she did was cry and pray. Later, she was right back there doing what she and her late husband loved. She decided to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. While training to walk, she met Rob. The two became friends and formed a hiking group.
“We like to call our group JOI, Journeys of Inspiration,” Thies said.
The group walks every week.
“There’s no doubt it gives you peace,” Thies said.
Thies and Flanigan successfully summited Mount Kilimanjaro. It was a cancer climb that raised a quarter of a million dollars for cancer victims, survivors and their families. Thies is a three-time cancer survivor. Growing up, Flanigan, a writer and author, considered writing a book about the trip and all that Thies had been through. Fast forward 15 years later and together they wrote Climbing Out: An Adventure in Rediscovering Life After Loss.
“I think we can help each other by sharing our struggles and if I can be a conduit for what Bonnie went through,” Flanigan said. “She was such an example of grief, faith, perseverance and resilience. I thought other people should know her as well as I do.”
Thies says her story is not a how-to book, but about hope and love and how we choose to get there and all the ups and downs and in between. Everyone grieves differently.
“One of the best pieces of advice I ever learned from my dad is to listen to your instincts, and I certainly did that the whole way,” Thies said. “All the way.”
Thies not only climbed the mountain, she found love again. You can read all about it in the book. “Climbing Out” is available on Amazon.
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