Thin Places: Where Faith Is Affirmed and Hope Dwells

By Mary Treacy O'keefe

Book Overview

Bill and Terry Treacy died three months apart, after fifty years of marriage and a lifetime of faith. Devastated by this loss, their ten children found comfort in inexplicable signs assuring them that... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1592981127
• ISBN13: 9781592981120
• Release Date: August 1970
• Publisher: Beaver's Pond Press, Incorporated
• Length: 163 Pages
• Weight: 0.57 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

This book is Sensitive, Insightful, and Rhythmically Written

This little book is packed with honest emotion and has the potential to pluck that "authentic" chord within every reader who has ever lost a loved one. Mary's odyssey of grief described in this book is buoyed up with hopefulness in the face of death and loss. Her whole family's journey is peppered with "thin places" that exquisitely detail the saga of her father's, then mother's passing - just months apart. Mary's account of what would be a deep devastating scar to any family, is turned into something beautiful - she teaches the reader to look for the good and hopeful (a "thin" place) in the wake of any tragedy or human dilemma. For example, the double Celtic rainbows she sees after her parents' deaths symbolize the presence and remembrance of two people who gave their children boundless gifts - most of all, the love that finds its way to a thin place in their hearts and binds them together. Sensitive, insightful and rhythmically written, Mary's words soothe a grief-stricken soul, and like dawn breaking, incite hope, healing and an awareness of greater spiritual dimensions. A must read for any hospice worker, professional or lay practitioner dedicated to supporting people whose lives are touched by loss. I look forward to the next edition in order to enter that "thin place" in consciousness where divine spirit dwells.

Thin Places: A Great Blessing to Readers Everywhere, especially those who are loosing or have lost a

"Thin Places, Where Faith is Affirmed and Hope Dwells," by Mary Treacy O'Keefe, is the true story of how her family of origin walked through the decline and deaths of her parents, Bill and Terry Treacy. Through a number of attention-getting events and experiences, O'Keefe and her siblings came to believe that their parents were together at peace in heaven and also still present to those they love here on earth. O'Keefe's story is compelling, but the book is more than a story; it's a handbook for letting go of those we dearly love when it's time for us to say goodbye to them. "Thin Places" is filled with tips and tools, practical information to smooth what is perhaps the most challenging of times in any family. Who wants to say final goodbyes, and who's good at it? Mary Treacy O'Keefe and her family lead the way with their story in "Thin Places." To me it says, "We did it, and when the time comes for you to do it, you can do it too!" Thin Places is a book about noticing and accessing strength, support, assistance and comfort that at first might seem to come out of nowhere. It's a book about recognizing and receiving all sorts of unexpected and powerful gifts when fear, sadness and vulnerability seem to threaten to overtake us. It's about thin places, where faith, which comes in all sizes and shades, is affirmed, and hope beyond all understanding dwells. Mary Treacy O'Keefe and her family members turned their losses into precious gifts by allowing thin places to open their eyes, their minds and their hearts. Her book, "Thin Places," is a great blessing to readers everywhere. Reviewed by Pam Keul, Turtle River Press, Feb/March, 2006

Comforting

This book paralleled some of my own experiences in dealing with my mother's sudden death in 2005; we are of Irish ancestry and it hit home on several notes.

A Loving Daughter's Memoir

This book is a great leveler. Each of us has experienced, or eventually will experience, the death of a loved one. We never know how we will deal with that trial until we go through it. It helps so much to learn how others coped with similar situations. We can all relate to some element in this tender book. The author is very honest in her ambivalence of feelings. She has shown, in Thin Places: Where Faith Is Affirmed and Hope Dwells, that humans are united in many ways, and that much good can come out of the most trying of circumstances. Families can grow together, instead of apart, when tough situations come into our lives. It is a book giving much hope to all of us. If we can cope with grace and dignity as we care for a dying parent, and then another one, we can get through anything that comes our way. We can become more aware of our spiritual core through such experiences, and we can reach out to others in their own hard times to provide support, understanding, and empathy. I did not want this book to end. Each chapter brought tears to my eyes and a warm feeling inside. Thanks for a beautiful memoir from a loving daughter to honor exemplary parents. Let's hope that we can each rise to the occasion and show the grace, love, and dignity that the Treacy family demonstrated when their parents slipped through the veil to eagerly await a joyful reunion with their devoted children someday.

Highly recommended reading for all those, whatever their faith, who suffer the loss of loved ones fr

After fifty years of marriage and faith, Bill and Terry Treacy died three months apart from one another. The loss simply devastated their ten children. But the siblings were able to find comfort in some inexplicable signs which assured them that their beloved parents were reunited in heaven, at peace, and still present in the lives of all those who grieved for them. Thin Places: Where Faith Is Affirmed And Hope Dwells by their daughter describes some of these signs and the realization that the ethereal veil between what we know of life here on earth and what we believe about the afterlife in heaven can become transparent at times, revealing loving messages of faith, hope, and grace to hearten us in our daily lives. Thin Places is a remarkable testament and very highly recommended reading for all those, whatever their faith, who suffer the loss of loved ones from their lives.