Grief Club

After Melody Beattie's young son died, she found herself welcomed into a new "club" -- a circle of people who had lived through the tragic loss of a child. This was not the first club in which Beattie unwittingly found herself. Years earlier she took part in a Twelve Step group, at first balking, then later embracing the healing principles she now credits with saving her life. Through these and other experiences, Beattie discovered a secret for getting through life's losses: by being present with and for others who've been there. "If we're alone, we can't see who we are. When we join the club, other people become the mirror," she writes. "Through them, we see ourselves and gain an understanding of what we're going through," she adds. In turn, with time, "we become that mirror for others."