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Book Feature: Seasons of Letting Go

Seasons of letting go by Frances Figart

Seasons of Letting Go: Most of what I know about truly living I learned by helping someone die

Frances Figart, Author

By Gina Malone

Frances Figart did not set out to write a book when she began blogging about becoming a caretaker for her mother in her hometown of Winchester, Kentucky. It was only later, after her mother’s death, that she revisited the essays and saw the pattern that became Seasons of Letting Go: Most of what I know about truly living I learned by helping someone die.

Beginning just before her mother’s transition and stretching over the last four years, the essays follow the author’s move to Asheville, where she joined The Laurel and eventually became its editor. The book is not only a personal account of loss and grief, but also a universal meditation on hope, self actualization and spirituality. The 12 essays are accompanied by stunning nature photography, colorful illustrations and graphic design elements that take the reader on a journey of healing.

A book launch and signing will be held at Metro Wines on Charlotte Street in Asheville on Friday, January 27, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Part of the proceeds from book sales at this happy hour event will benefit a Gatlinburg family who lost their home and pets in the November fires.

On February 25, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., there will be an open house, launch party and book signing at the Gingko Tree Gallery in Black Mountain, which features the work of Joye Ardyn Durham, whose image is on the book’s cover.

When asked what her mother would think of the project, Figart says, “Every chapter would make her cry—and she would appreciate going on that emotional journey. Like me, she would hope that our very singular experience would offer some comfort and hope to a wide audience.”

Seasons of Letting Go: Most of what I know about truly living I learned by helping someone die, essays, 2016, softcover, $19.95, amazon.com, by Frances Figart. Learn more at francesfigart.com.

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