3 tcf.org.uk Hello everyone! I am pleased to introduce myself to you all in this issue of Compassion magazine. I have joined the TCF editorial team and am hopeful that I can maintain the excellent standards set by my predecessor Gina. I wish her well as she relaxes after her 13-year stint in the editorial chair! Anyone who meets me will quickly detect the love of words which has brought me to this place today; that and my membership of TCF since 2005. In July that year, my 19-year-old son James lost his life to accidental drowning in the river Thames at Kingston. This year on 11 September, the date that he was born, our lovely James will have been gone for as long as he was here, and that is a difficult concept to absorb. After losing James, I very quickly found and joined TCF. Some of you may recognise my name from writing for the magazine, the occasional guest blog and a Zoom lockdown presentation. The catharsis of writing out one’s grief for a lost child, sibling or grandchild can be a great comfort; it continues to help me to process the unimaginable pain of loss. Many years ago, I was given the treat of a Spa Day. During the day, we had access to various complementary therapists, and I chose to have my ‘numbers’ read by a numerologist. Although I was sceptical at the time, one thing that she said stuck with me. She told me, “One day you are going to use the written word in ways you cannot now imagine”. I could draw nothing further from her. But I have often remembered those words. I could never have anticipated that the loss of James would lead to my publishing two books, Into the Mourning Light in 2014 and Living in the Mourning Light in 2019. When the first book was published, I was approached by the RNLI as they read of our successful campaign with Kingston Council to institute safety measures at the riverside. I was invited to be involved in the Respect the Water promotion, and that year James’s story featured on the glasses that were used locally in the pubs and clubs, an effective warning for the nighttime economy. My association with this organisation continued with several talks and presentations at the RNLI College in Poole. Over time, I have become an ambassador for water safety and drowning prevention and I highlight the annual water safety campaigns around the UK, as well as the work of the National Water Safety Forum. I was a medical secretary throughout my working years, and I now offset grief writing by running a creative writing group in Mid Devon where we live, as well as spending time with my husband, family and our rescue greyhound Scotty. In this issue of Compassion, we hope that you will be able to draw comfort from the content. There are articles from bereaved siblings as well as those who have lost children. Sibling loss means experiencing the loss of someone with whom you thought you would grow old, and you lose the other player in your shared memories from childhood, both good and bad. Letter from the (New) Editor Andrea Corrie
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