Owen’s Baby Blanket with Mary Klinger

Mary Klinger’s son went missing and was eventually found dead when he just turned 18. The Klinger family was on the news when Own went missing and when he was found, making their private grief public.  In this episode Mary reads an essay she wrote about Owen’s blanket which became a symbol for him and their family life. It’s a beautiful piece that reminds us objects of our loved ones can help us feel connected to the one we’re missing.  Mary’s suggestion to grievers is to acknowledge grief is hard. And hard as it is, you can get through it. Grief has changed her from being a rule follower, a perfectionist. Now she’s “throwing away the old plan. Something new is coming through the grief experience.”  Mary Klinger is a recovering perfectionist. In 2019, this soulful mom of three suffered the traumatic loss of her 18-year-old son Owen, even though she had been doing everything “right.”  Crafting whimsical Christmas letters morphed into writing about the experience of loving and losing Owen. Sharing these reflections online and with a community like Coffee and Grief helps Mary find a way to keep going after the shredding of her heart. She also takes solace in playing lots of tennis and discovering hundreds of heart shaped rocks at the beach. Mary lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband Dustin and their rescue pup, Almond. Mary wrote “Owen’s Blanket” in the 30day Write Your Grief Out course we offer. The course is happening again this October. If you have a grief you’d like to write about, please join us. It’s a writing start/prompt every weekday and eight zoom calls held on Wednesday and Saturdays. It’s for any level of writer, any grief. Here’s the link to learn more and sign up: https://writeyourgriefout.thinkific.com You can find more Mary here: moreowen.org On instagram: @moreowenklinger On Facebook, the page where Mary posts is called More Owen. There is also a More Owen group on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/1255114774690272/ Thank you for letting us be in your ears.  Coffee, Grief and Gratitude is a created by Anne Gudger and Maria Gibson, a mom/daughter duo who talk about grief.  Join our October 2023 Write Your Grief Out at writeyourgriefout.thinkific.com You can find them on Facebook at Coffee and Grief. Please join their private Facebook page: Coffee and Grief Community. You can also email them at: [email protected] Anne’s memoir, THE FIFTH CHAMBER, a memoir of loss and love, is forthcoming September 2023. It’s available for pre-order at your local bookstore or https://bookshop.org or Am⁠azon https://bit.ly/3nZIvEy