Raising, and Losing, My Remarkable Teenage Mother: A Memoir

Description

". . . a darn good page-turner that could easily rival any riveting novel." --INDIEREADER (5-Star Review)

My teenage mom viewed my arrival as having a live baby doll she could dress in cute outfits with matching booties. Beyond that, she wasn't quite sure what to do with me. She hadn't imagined that from the near get-go, I'd be (in her words) the "wiser, more mature one" of the two of us, responding to her antics with squinty-eyed scrutiny, or a hand thrown on my hip when I'd gotten her number on some joke she'd played on me. Statistically, our exceedingly open and playful role-reversal friendship should have hurled us both into the realm of dysfunction. But the "meant to be" magic we shared, and the path we were fated to travel both together and apart, was deeper than either of us could have imagined.

When Stacey Aaronson was born in 1969, her mother, Bree, was sixteen and barely out of braces. Hastily wed to Stacey's dad and divorced soon after, Bree raised Stacey with his and her parents' loving support. Following the nudging of her heart, she rejected mothering cues from her mostly structured, mid-century upbringing and favored allowing Stacey to bloom unfettered in her own particular soil, boldly and unapologetically giving her daughter complete freedom to be her authentic self. The result is the extraordinary story of this mother-daughter duo reminiscent of Gilmore Girls.

Anchoring each other to the world through their distinct brand of "us-ness," Bree and Stacey take on life with an uncanny gift for seeing magic in the most ordinary moments. Whether bouncing between the markedly different homes of her mom, dad, and grandparents, discovering her religious and sexual identities, or starting college in her mid-twenties, Stacey is buoyed by Bree's unwavering love and acceptance. Even when bookish and conservative Stacey bobs through choppy waters with her free-spirited mom, their uncommon closeness remains unshakable. She is by Bree's side as she seeks the biological mother she never knew, and applauds her mom's resilience as she rises above several hard-hitting challenges. But Bree--despite her vibrant spirit and astounding near-reversal of an MS diagnosis--learns too young she has cancer, whose underlying emotional roots even a cutting-edge, non-toxic treatment can't cure.

As Stacey steps into the role of caregiver, the two face the most poignant leg of their journey: nurturing their deep soul connection even as one soul transitions to another realm. Brimming with miracles, wonder, and joy even in its saddest moments, Raising, and Losing, My Remarkable Teenage Mother is a tender yet ebullient celebration of life, of love, of death's mysterious passage, and the mystical forces that bind us all.

​​​​​​​"An intimate and moving account of a singular bond." --KIRKUS REVIEWS