I have known Anne Cooper for about 30 years, but I did not really know her until I read her memoir, Second Life. As Anne shares her life before and after the death of her 16-year-old son, Todd, she brings the reader to the same conclusion that she herself reached: there are many ways to achieve spirituality. Second Life is a story of family, of grief, and of coming of age. In Anne’s case, she comes of age when she overcomes her grief a dozen years after her son’s death, realizing that “death is not the end, but a continuation.” In the first half of the book, Anne tells what her life was; in the second half, Anne explore the multiple ways life can be. She moves from dependence to independence. Finally refusing to hide the alcoholism of her husband, the family’s financial problems, and her own insecurities—“I am becoming a deep weathered basket”—Anne resolves to build a second life. “I was a woman who had made promises to herself. I was making a new life that would be very different from the old one.
Anne has an extraordinary talent to recapture the moments with a deranged mother-in-law, a reclusive husband, three teenage sons, and diverse jobs. Many of the scenes are raw and painful, none more so than the night of Todd’s death. Anne also has an exceptional ability to share the extensive experiences and reading that led her to a spiritual awakening. “It was hard for me to let go of what I thought was the right way, but once I did, I became a better navigator of the unknown.” At one point, a psychic predicts Anne’s future: “There’s writing—a lot—and inspired. It will be a benefit to you and others.” The psychic was right. Second Life is inspiring, life changing. Readers will be examining their own lives as Anne reveals the many dimensions of hers.
-Kathryn H. Hug, PhD, Palm Springs, CA
