Jean Williams

Jean Williams, a freelance writer, lost her young adult son Joshua to suicide in 2004. She lives in Southern Oregon in a mountain valley community where she works on short stories for adults and novels for young people. She grows a large garden on an acre of land with her husband, who is a retired police detective. Jean is the mother of three grown children and grandmother of 12. Jean has been a practicing Christians for 38 years and owes her life to God. Many times after Joshua's death, Jean wished she could join her son in the afterlife, but her faith in God kept her on earth. The last few years have been filled with joy, as Jean reaches out to help others through their grief process. http://joshua-mom.blogspot.com

Articles:

New Normal After a Son’s Suicide

New Normal After a Son’s Suicide Five years after my son’s suicide, I stood at my picture window and smiled at the snowbirds that hovered around the feeder. They spit […]

Mothers After Suicide: Potent Memories

Watering the Apple Tree Less than a year before he died, our son Joshua watered our apple tree often. I doubted the watering he did would help, because the tree […]

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Missing a Son During his Birthday Season

As I planted my veggie seeds last spring, I sensed a joy to bring in new life. As I now tear down my garden, I am relieved the work is […]

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A Bittersweet Mother’s Day After Son’s Suicide

“I’m having a Mother’s Day Tea,” my friend Becky said on the other end of the phone line, “and am inviting some of our writer friends and a few of […]

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The Year of Firsts

Imagine a young son who has struggled his whole life with pain and illness. His parents have cared for his physical needs and felt responsible for his emotional well-being. Now, […]

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A Mother’s Heart

A heart grown weary, A soul shattered by loss. How can it be, that I still live, And yet my son does not. As mother Mary, “kept these things,” I […]

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Grieving With Help After My Son’s Suicide

We were not left alone after our son, Joshua, died by suicide. People from across the states took the time to listen and some cried with us. It would take […]

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Overcoming Fear After Losing Son to Suicide

Fear. Terror. Do these words describe your present state because of loss of a loved one? I know it did mine after our son, Joshua, died by suicide over six […]

Open to Hope is an online community offering inspirational stories of loss, hope and recovery. We believe hope is the bridge between loss and recovery.