Review of My Living Will
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brian maregedze
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- Latest Review: My Living Will by John Trautwein
Review of My Living Will
[Following is a volunteer review of "My Living Will" by John Trautwein.]
Book review by Brian Maregedze
My Living Will: A Father’s Story of Loss & Hope is an emotive real-life story of suicide committed by a 13-year-old boy as told by his father John Trautwein. Will Trautwein hanged himself by the closet door in October 2010. The book is structurally organized into 13 parts with each section thematically accounting for the memories, experiences and lived journey that the writer travelled when he lost Will-his son. Rather than being a story of sadness, John Trautwein offers heart-touching supportive family members and friends to raise hope in all complex uneasy circumstances. Although the book was published in 2014 by West Brow Press, its relevance remains significant as ever before.
An indispensable part of the whole book is that of finding hope in odd circumstances. It’s arguably equivalent to reading the Biblical Story of Job. Despite the loss, John Trautwein with family and friends’ supportive role, managed to start an inspiration journey towards assisting those parents, individuals who have lost their loved ones and still hope for the best. Christianity also forms another layer of hope in efforts made to understand the way John responded to Will’s death. No wonder, the title of the book carries the name of Will while at the same time gesturing towards eternity using the term Living hence, My Living Will.
The beliefs in human companionship and hope are vital in confronting the scourge of suicide. John Trautwein deploys the acronym ACT meaning;
“Acknowledge—Take your friend seriously if he or she shows signs of suicide. The person is serious!
Care—Show your friend the love, the good. Be that life teammate: Hope is found in the eyes of a friend.”
Tell—Confide in a trusted adult.”
More importantly, the accounts written by the author depended on professional ethics of writing particularly that of seeking the consent of some participants in workshops, seminars that the author shared in the book. Given that it took more than three years of writing this personal emotive story of loss and hope, John Trautwein demonstrates his patience and diligence in delivering this work which is definitely a source of light to believers in humanity and those parents/guardians raising teenagers. Again, even those who are interacting with humanity at different levels of professional and social interaction can without doubt immensely drink from this oasis of knowledge to handle the complex challenge of suicide. In a way, an avenue of resilience is offered by not only John Trautwein but also his wife Susie was also a pillar of support through it all.
Challenges observable in this book include reference attributed to the American Academy of Pediatrics with an internet link to follow which however when followed/clicked leads to nowhere or takes one to a dead end. It’s from this web page link that the statistical challenges paused by suicide among high school learners are indicated. Again, it is Paediatrics and not Pediatrics as the book indicates.
Irrespective of the above mentioned minor statistical aspect, the book remains a book which offers real life experiences of hope in the face of life challenges, this case being that of suicide. I do recommend the book 3 out of 4.
******
My Living Will
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Book review by Brian Maregedze
My Living Will: A Father’s Story of Loss & Hope is an emotive real-life story of suicide committed by a 13-year-old boy as told by his father John Trautwein. Will Trautwein hanged himself by the closet door in October 2010. The book is structurally organized into 13 parts with each section thematically accounting for the memories, experiences and lived journey that the writer travelled when he lost Will-his son. Rather than being a story of sadness, John Trautwein offers heart-touching supportive family members and friends to raise hope in all complex uneasy circumstances. Although the book was published in 2014 by West Brow Press, its relevance remains significant as ever before.
An indispensable part of the whole book is that of finding hope in odd circumstances. It’s arguably equivalent to reading the Biblical Story of Job. Despite the loss, John Trautwein with family and friends’ supportive role, managed to start an inspiration journey towards assisting those parents, individuals who have lost their loved ones and still hope for the best. Christianity also forms another layer of hope in efforts made to understand the way John responded to Will’s death. No wonder, the title of the book carries the name of Will while at the same time gesturing towards eternity using the term Living hence, My Living Will.
The beliefs in human companionship and hope are vital in confronting the scourge of suicide. John Trautwein deploys the acronym ACT meaning;
“Acknowledge—Take your friend seriously if he or she shows signs of suicide. The person is serious!
Care—Show your friend the love, the good. Be that life teammate: Hope is found in the eyes of a friend.”
Tell—Confide in a trusted adult.”
More importantly, the accounts written by the author depended on professional ethics of writing particularly that of seeking the consent of some participants in workshops, seminars that the author shared in the book. Given that it took more than three years of writing this personal emotive story of loss and hope, John Trautwein demonstrates his patience and diligence in delivering this work which is definitely a source of light to believers in humanity and those parents/guardians raising teenagers. Again, even those who are interacting with humanity at different levels of professional and social interaction can without doubt immensely drink from this oasis of knowledge to handle the complex challenge of suicide. In a way, an avenue of resilience is offered by not only John Trautwein but also his wife Susie was also a pillar of support through it all.
Challenges observable in this book include reference attributed to the American Academy of Pediatrics with an internet link to follow which however when followed/clicked leads to nowhere or takes one to a dead end. It’s from this web page link that the statistical challenges paused by suicide among high school learners are indicated. Again, it is Paediatrics and not Pediatrics as the book indicates.
Irrespective of the above mentioned minor statistical aspect, the book remains a book which offers real life experiences of hope in the face of life challenges, this case being that of suicide. I do recommend the book 3 out of 4.
******
My Living Will
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: My Living Will by John Trautwein
