The Final Gift of the Beloved: Her Disappearance-13 Days

MEMOIR:  From the moment Barron Steffen is informed his wife has died in a car accident, he embarks on a 13-day process of grief and love, handling the tragedy through the lens of his spiritual training with Siddha Yoga, gurus and years of meditation. Told through intense moment by moment detail at times, he draws on both written and recorded memories of those days and presents both his past before and after meeting his wife and the moments of those 13 days as he discovers what it means to love, the divine, and his reasons and purpose for being alive and living beyond her death.

An almost biographical tale, this story is a mix of presenting Barron Steffen’s grieving process with his spiritual beliefs and habits. An intense record of ups and downs, readers will find each chapter varies from strong emotions, to memories to highly intellectual discussions of thoughts, and how they connect spiritually both positively and negatively. While the story is presented as a tragic love story, it is more of a journey of spirituality told through love and grief, as the focus is rarely on the couple themselves, but rather how their relationship caused Mr. Steffen to improve spiritually. This makes this book particularly interesting for those studying meditation and spirituality through Siddha Yoga, but very difficult for the average reader as the author uses words tied to his faith but rarely explains these terms. However, readers intrigued by the spirituality associated with Siddha Yoga with find this raw, emotion-filled tale worth the read.

Sarah E Bradley