Grief isn't on our radar until we're in the midst of it. You don't wake up one morning expecting someone so young and full of energy, someone you love and care about so much...to die. But then there it is. The fierce, dark, and consuming storm. Not just the kind that rains. The kind that tears and uproots. We will all have to face one at sometime in our lives. Our storm involved the loss of our son, Aidan, born with Down syndrome. He passed away in a matter of days from the sudden onset of two bacterial infections neither medicine nor we could do anything about. We felt helpless. A hard season of weeping, wandering, praying and grieving followed. Years of counseling. A persistent ache. Statistically we should not have made it. We should not be married at all. But God has a redeeming hope for you-a dawn that follows, revealing unexpected color and beauty. The restoration we experienced in the pages ahead can be yours too. Grief to Grateful is a journal and legacy for our other children, that has helped us revisit and reclaim our hearts. In considering our narrative, we're grateful we've been able to pick-up and make sense of pieces we had forgotten and realized that others might benefit from our story. We believe God will use the insights we've learned along the way to encourage you, not just to stay married in difficulty, but to have a marriage that can weather deep adversity, and thrive in phenomenal ways.
About the Author: Jason and Summer Sterner have known each other since they were thirteen years old. Married in their early twenty's, they started their family right away. Eighteen years and five amazing children later, they have experienced grief and disappointment many times but none so heart-breaking as the death of their son, Aidan, at just seventeen months old. In healing and growing together through a desperate situation, one that often claims marriages with high divorce rates, their experience has become a positive life-changing chapter-a sacred memorial. Jason currently works in marketing and branding as an operations and new business strategist. Summer is busy homeschooling and raising their four remaining children, Isaac (16), Madelyn (15), Micah (7) and Moses (2). They love to spend time together as a family preferring the outdoors and any beach or mountain range they can find. They have a passion to use these life experiences to help others, who have experienced similar losses, find hope and restoration in life, love, and loyalty. Their family currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia.