What Remains Is Love

Grieving begins the moment someone near and dear to us is given a terminal illness prognosis or dies. Only then do we begin to face the losses we've carried all our lives.

Unexpectedly, DiMauro's beloved younger brother, Jon, aged 58, was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a deadly form of brain cancer. Her close-knit family was heartbroken and in shock: Jon was an athlete, a vibrant spirit, and the youngest of four siblings. This was not supposed to happen.

What Remains Is Love is an intimate family story, a journey of grief throughout DiMauro's brother's terminal cancer diagnosis as well as her emotional struggles both alone and with other family members. In reconciling and finding peace with his untimely death, the author details their relationship, sharing memories of a lifetime and intimate family history. She explores how navigating the loss of her brother resulted in the unearthing and unpacking of her childhood traumas and repressed grievances. Through humour and heartbreak, joy and reflection, she examines how acknowledging our pain can open the door to healing and to the possibility that death is not an end, but a transformation that deepens our capacity to love and live.

We live in a grief-illiterate society. In confronting the silence that surrounds loss, death, and dying, and through exploring how other cultures approach grief, not as something to hide or rush through, but as a vital, communal ritual that leads us toward healing. DiMauro shares a glimpse and a comparison of cultural differences in handling grief and loss and how we might stay connected to loved ones after they are "gone."

The author aims to offer the reader companionship through the mystifying chaos and helps map the hidden terrain of memory, trauma, loss, healing, and love that emerges when we allow ourselves to fully grieve; and yet, everyone grieves differently. There's no single right or wrong way to do it. No map fits every person or every loss. She hopes to enlighten other seekers and lessen the fear around death and dying.

Above all, Joanne DiMauro's story is a testament of love, dedicated to her brother Jon and shared with anyone who's ever wondered: "How do I survive this?"

You're not alone. What Remains Is Love can help you on your grief journey.