The Obituary Writer Quotes

“She understood that grief is not neat and orderly; it does not follow any rules. Time does not heal it. Rather time insists on passing and as it does, grief changes but does not go away.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“This was how to help a family who has just lost their child. Wash the clothes, make soup. Don't ask them what they need, bring them what they need. Keep them warm. Listen to them rant, and cry, and tell their story over and over.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“Don't waste your one beautiful life," Vivien said softly.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“love is reliable. infatuation is temporary.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“On April 18, 1906, when that earthquake hit San Francisco and took David from her, Vivien began to speak the language of grief. She understood that grief is not neat and orderly; it does not follow any rules. Time does not heal it. Rather, time insists on passing, and as it does, grief changes but does not go away. Sometimes she could actually visualize her grief. It was a wave, a tsunami that came unexpectedly and swept her away. She could see it, a wall of pain that had grabbed hold of her and pulled her under. Some days, she could reach the air and breathe in huge comforting gulps. Some days she barely broke the surface, and still, after all this time, some days it consumed her and she wondered if there was any way free of it.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“Grief made people guilty. Guilty for being five minutes late, for taking the wrong streetcar, for ignoring a couph or sleeping too soundly. Guilt and grief went hand in hand.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“If you want to feel like ginger ale Claire, drink a ginger ale.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“She understood that grief is not neat and orderly; it does not follow any rules. Time does not heal it. Rather, time insists on passing, and as it does, grief changes but does not go away. Sometimes she could actually visualize her grief. It was a wave, a tsunami that came unexpectedly and swept her away. She could see it, a wall of pain that had grabbed hold of her and pulled her under. Some days, she could reach the air and breathe in huge comforting gulps. Some days she barely broke the surface, and still, after all this time, some days it consumed her and she wondered if there was any way free of it.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“I see you in the library. The way you love the books.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“...I felt untethered. A man stepped into my life that day and grounded me.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“She understood that grief is not neat and orderly; it does not follow any rules. Time does not heal it. Rather, time insists on passing, and as it does, grief changes but does not go away. Sometimes she could actually visualize”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“I don't know what I want or what I feel. I thought I wanted this. Us. But now I'm not so sure.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“Still, he loved her. She knew that. He loved her the best way he could. But she wasn't sure that was enough anymore.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“She was always kind of sad, even when she smiled.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“Darling, the psalm tells us that we must walk through the valley. we cannot walk around it, I'm afraid.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“She took the first tentative, terrifying, exhilarating steps into her future.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer

“We can have faith in the future, only if we have faith in ourselves.”
― Ann Hood, The Obituary Writer