Learning to Be Me Without You: A Story of Love, Loss, and Coming Home

“. . . a gift of words, and it is a gift beyond words. Join Paula in the pages as she walks each of us along a sacred path: through grief, yes, but most importantly, to the God whose endless grace paves each step.” 

~Tricia Lott Williford, author of And Life Comes Back  

Learning to Be Me Without You is a love story about a diagnosis, one last adventure, a crisis of faith, and a transformed life. With stunning authenticity, Paula Freeman chronicles her journey into widowhood, the club no one wants to join. Yet in the journey, she discovers how God recovers life from loss. 

When doctors confirm that Paula’s husband of forty years has an uncurable lung disease, fear and grief overwhelm her, and she begins to journal. This memoir is a vulnerable and sometimes humorous account—in real time—of a terminal illness, a cross-country move, her husband’s untimely death, and an unscripted road to healing during a set-apart season by the sea. It’s a story of God’s faithfulness in the crucible of grief and what can happen when we say yes to his invitation to Follow me . . . I want to recover your life.  

This book offers gentle guidance and insight toward personal growth through grief and can also be used as a support group, widows’ ministry, or church group resource.