Beyond the Opened Door: Grief as an Opportunity to Rediscover the Self

In his second book, Beyond the Opened Door: Grief as an Opportunity to Rediscover the Self, Yehuda Jacobi shares his experiences with grieving after the loss of his partner, friend and Teacher in the Taoist tradition. His psychologist recommended that he keep a grief journal to document his mourning process. Using those journal entries, he shares his dreams, life events, and commentaries, as well as his shock, anger and fury. He reveals his discoveries and challenges to achieving his eventual forgiveness, reconciliation, and peace.There is a different focus with this memoir and it is that Death presents a challenge for everyone who mourns. After stripping all the labels of religion, culture, or sexuality, the one question that appears to be common for everyone is: how do we move on after the death of a loved one? The answer lies in the opportunity to rediscover the Self, a Self which is waiting beyond an opened door. The answers will be different for everyone who grieves so the self-discovery process is unique. One thing is certain: the answers will not reveal themselves until the mourner crosses the opened door. ‘Ann pulled me out of my reverie when she rushed up to me and asked if I had seen the quotation on the card I had selected. As I said, I hadn’t paid that much attention. She shoved the card under my nose. The card depicted a garden setting with an open iron gate. The quotation was from the Book of Revelations, Chapter 3, verse 8, and read, Look, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. It was the perfect quotation.