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Time Flies When You're Alive: A Real-Life Love Story
An actor recounts his marriage to Francesca Draper, their joy in becoming parents, his wife's courageous two-year battle with breast cancer, and the decision to have a child that cost her her life
175 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1993
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June 13, 2024
Death is a devastating thing, there's no other way to put it. But, it's also a natural and necessary part of life, and we should all learn to embrace it before it surprises us. That's the best lesson that you can get from Paul Linke's heartbreaking story about Francesca, or Chex, his wife of ten years who died because of breast cancer.
The book was inspired from Paul's eulogy at his wife's funeral. As an actor and writer, he knows how to tell a story... And they have a pretty amazing one! It's such a beautiful tale of deep love and connection between two people, who have to face life's greatest adversity with three children and even before turning 40: a life-threatening disease, which ultimately took Chex's life.
You can feel the heart and the honesty in every paragraph of the book, as well as the pain and the suffering. Francesca was definitely a one-of-a-kind woman who left beautiful lessons and unforgettable memories to every who surrounded her. And it's impossible not to cry when the time comes in the book, when Francesca is leaving this world and you're feeling right there, next to them, weeping for a woman you've learned to know and love through her husband's eyes.
One of my favorites quotes:
"Grief is an individual passage in which there is neither a right nor wrong way. It is an undeniable ritual that needs to be honored and completed. Like a snake shading its skin, it is a tangible event. Ironically, this painful process is also the means by which healing, catharsis, and spiritual renewal are attained. But this can only happen if one chooses to embrace the experience from that point of you. Otherwise, it can be at the disabling and life-negating episode."
The book was inspired from Paul's eulogy at his wife's funeral. As an actor and writer, he knows how to tell a story... And they have a pretty amazing one! It's such a beautiful tale of deep love and connection between two people, who have to face life's greatest adversity with three children and even before turning 40: a life-threatening disease, which ultimately took Chex's life.
You can feel the heart and the honesty in every paragraph of the book, as well as the pain and the suffering. Francesca was definitely a one-of-a-kind woman who left beautiful lessons and unforgettable memories to every who surrounded her. And it's impossible not to cry when the time comes in the book, when Francesca is leaving this world and you're feeling right there, next to them, weeping for a woman you've learned to know and love through her husband's eyes.
One of my favorites quotes:
"Grief is an individual passage in which there is neither a right nor wrong way. It is an undeniable ritual that needs to be honored and completed. Like a snake shading its skin, it is a tangible event. Ironically, this painful process is also the means by which healing, catharsis, and spiritual renewal are attained. But this can only happen if one chooses to embrace the experience from that point of you. Otherwise, it can be at the disabling and life-negating episode."
Displaying 1 of 1 review