It's the story of Ben who is suffering from the loss of his girlfriend, Marly, to cancer. Since her death he has shut out the world, said humbug to love and life. On the eve of Valentine's Day he is visited by Marly who tells him that three sprits will be coming by to visit him.
Ben's loss and suffering reminded me of this quote from Odd Hours: "Grief can destroy you- or focus you. You can decide a relationship was all for nothing if it had to end in death, and you alone. Or you can realize that every moment of it had more meaning that you dared to recognize at the time, so much meaning it scared you, so you just lived, just took for granted the love and laughter of each day, and didn’t allow yourself to consider the sacredness of it. But when it’s over and you’re alone, you begin to see it wasn’t just a movie and a dinner together, not just watching sunset together, not just scrubbing a floor or washing dishes together or worrying over a high electric bill. It was everything, it was the why of life, every event and precious moment of it. The answer to the mystery of existence is the love you shared sometimes so imperfectly, and when the loss wakes you to the deeper beauty of it, to the sanctity of it, you can’t get off your knees for a long time, you’re driven to your knees not by the weight of the loss but by the gratitude for what preceded the loss. And the ache is always there, but one day not the emptiness, because to nurture the emptiness,to take solace in it, is to disrespect the gift of life"
Which is a completely awesome quote from the always preachy Dean Koontz.
Now I have never lost the love of my life so I can't say that I know exactly how Ben felt after Marly died, but I have lost many loved ones and I know that death is so hard for the living.
I feel sorry for Ben a lot because he is not a believer and doesn't know that he will see Marly again in Heaven, but he will. Great book.
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