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Gifts of Passage: What the Dying Tell Us with the Gifts They Leave Behind

Amy Hollingsworth
Thomas Nelson (2008)
ISBN 9780849919206
Reviewed by LuAnn Morgan for RebeccasReads (5/08)

Reflecting on her father’s death, Amy Hollingsworth felt he was giving her a gift with his passing. A word of encouragement, a sense of peace, a lesson to carry with her… it could be any or all of these or more.

To learn what the gift was, she spent a year studying the deaths of various people and what they left behind for their loved ones. She looked into the lives, words and works of such people as C.S. Lewis, Fred Rogers, the writers of “The Phantom of the Opera” and others.  The result is the book “Gifts of Passage: What the Dying Tell Us with the Gifts They Leave Behind.”

Hollingsworth found herself comparing her own experiences with others who had lost their own beloved friends and family members. She talks about the lessons she found through her studies and uses those same lessons to discover what her father left her.
Indeed, this was not a simple undertaking. Hollingsworth, who holds a master’s degree in counseling psychology, used her profound faith in God to lead her through the study.
As she progressed, she found gifts could fall into several distinct categories – gifts of love, presence, “from My Father Figure,” honor, intrigue and, of course, “from My Father.” Each type of gift is purposeful, yet takes a certain amount of prayer and reflection to discover. These gifts provide a type of peace to allow survivors to heal and continue with their daily lives.

One of the most touching stories she shares is her interpretation of the gift left by Jesus to his own mother. As she faced the inevitability of his death, Jesus entrusted her care to another, providing her with someone to take his place in her life. Hollingsworth’s description of the event not only helps the reader understand this portion of the story itself, it gives a new way to look at a familiar tale.

“Gifts of Passage” is filled with inspiring thoughts that will ease the pain of those facing the death of a loved one. I found it particularly poignant as I was led to reflect on the losses I have dealt with over the years, such as the deaths of my sister, father, grandparents and dear friends. I found myself considering what gifts they left for me with their passing.  A wonderful adventure is in store for those who read “Gifts of Passage: What the Dying Tell Us with the Gifts They Leave Behind.”

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