On January 4, 2003, my husband Jeff Joel died of a heart attack, after 12 very full years together. He was 55. I was 60. In the months that followed, I instinctively turned to writing as my way of processing grief. “THIS VAST BEING” is a testament to that “Voyage through Grief and Exaltation.”

From the Forward:

I offer this book to you who find yourselves magnetically drawn to death and birth and other significant occasions when the crack between worlds opens and we catch a glimpse of mystery. In the brief hush that follows we sense a larger reality that, if we allow ourselves to open, changes us. Nothing continues as before. The universe fills with meaning.

At this time in western history, we fear mystery, and seem to want to close the crack quickly, to smooth it over and pretend it does not exist. Yet, such crossroads in our lives give us pause — if not in the moment, then they haunt memory.

From the Back Cover

This book breaks through the usual grieving customs to render meaningful our most painful experiences.

Situated at the juncture between physical and spiritual planes, This Vast Being penetrates the mysterious reaches of the psyche, fearlessly admits what others may be ashamed of, and yokes the spirit’s release to the body’s howl.

What readers say

“Ann, explorer and witness to psychic, synchronistic, astrological, and psychological links between inner psyche, outer reality and invisible realms, portrays a marriage that continued after death to encompass these realms and their differences. A remarkable narrative.” — Jean Shinonda Bolen, M.D. Jungian analyst, author of Close to the Bone: Life-Threatening Illness and Soul.

“This guidebook to the grieving process is so freshly and reassuringly portrayed that I fear death less for the reading of it.” — Kate Blackburn, M.D. psychiatrist

“. . . a journey of profound spiritual exploration, at levels far beyond those generally aspired to.” — Jenny Kander, retired grief counselor

“. . . by turns witty and literary, then struck and even profane, her story startles the reader into reconsidering the meaning of life, death, and most of all, love. Highly recommended.” — Anne Newkirk Niven, Editor, SageWoman magazine