Six Funerals and a Wedding: A Memoir

In many ways, Mary Odgers was living the American dream. Her husband was a commercial pilot for Delta Airlines, she was an acute-care nurse, and they had delighted in raising their three now-grown sons in the home they had built in the beautiful Ramona Valley of Southern California. But on one October day, the winds suddenly changed, shifting a raging wildfire in the direction of that dream home--and putting into motion a series of unthinkable losses over the next fourteen months that Mary never imagined possible.

Overwhelmed by unimaginable grief, Mary not only had to process the disparate emotions tied to each of the losses, but she eventually had to make a choice: remain in the space of despair, or find ways through her pain toward a reinvention of herself. With incredible strength and determination, she chose the latter. When two more losses followed soon afterward, along with the chance of newfound love, she was faced once again with traversing shades of grief, but also with embracing a leap of faith into a whole new future.

Told in eight distinct vignettes, Six Funerals and a Wedding is an unconventional memoir that invites us into the markedly different stories of the treasured entities Mary loved and lost, the raw and varied nuances that grief holds, and the unexpected love story that sparked a new chapter--all with profound honesty, and with an ever-present undercurrent of hope that reminds us that evolution is possible through loss, that life can go on and be beautiful, and how remarkably resilient the human spirit can be.

About the Author
Odgers, Mary Twomey: - Mary Twomey Odgers is a writer, registered nurse of twenty-five years, and life coach, whose default view of the world is through the lens of optimism. Born in the Washington DC area as the second of six children to a Marine Corps general and a former Navy nurse, Mary moved frequently, and by the age of twenty-one had had twenty different addresses. This nomad-like existence that required starting over numerous times, along with having to reinvent herself after experiencing multiple tragedies, has allowed her to specialize in navigating transitions with her coaching clients. In addition, she holds a Master Grief Coach Certification. Having made her permanent home in various parts of Southern California since 1989, Mary spends her free time hiking Mt. Woodson, enjoying walks along the beach, swimming in the ocean with friends, cooking, traveling the world, and relishing the company of her two grown sons, extended family, and loving friends. She also devotes one day a week to working as a post-anesthesia nurse. Mary currently resides in Solana Beach with Pierre.