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Louise Mathewson

Louise Mathewson

About

Louise Mathewson holds a master’s degree in
pastoral studies from Loyola University in Chicago.
Her work has appeared in numerous publications,
including Wordgathering: Journal of Disability Poetry,
Mochila Review, Boulder County Kid and Sasee magazines,
and the anthologies Cup of Comfort—Vol. I (Adams Media)
and Borderlines ’08 (University of Portsmouth, United
Kingdom). Most recently her work appears in Mentor’s
Bouquet, an anthology edited by Linda Leedy Schneider
(Finishing Line Press, Fall 2009).

Louise has always loved to write about the sacred moments
in everyday experiences, but today these experiences hold
even deeper meaning. In February 2003 she emerged from
a two-week coma following an auto accident in which
she suffered a traumatic brain injury. Though she struggled
at fi rst, she resumed writing as soon as she was able. Today
Louise lives with her husband in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, where she continues to write and recover.

Gimme-Jimmy

Gimme-Jimmy

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Description

<span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';"></span><p style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12pt;"><font face="Calibri">JamesAlexander’s nickname was Gimme-Jimmy because he was a greedy and selfish bully.<span>  </span>Imagine Jimmy’s concern when he discoveredthat every time he said the word “Gimme”, his hand grew larger. <span> </span>Jimmy was happy to discover that when he waspolite and said “Please” and “Thank you”, his hand began to shrink.<span>  </span>He started practicing his new “Polite Rule”and found out that it was much more fun to share.<span style="color:#000000;"></span></font></span></p><p></p><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';"></span><p style="margin:0in 0in 0pt;" class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12pt;"></span></p><p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span> </p><span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';"></span>

Story Behind The Book

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Reviews

<p align="center"><font face="Verdana" size="2"> <span lang="en" xml:lang="en"><font size="2"><font face="Verdana"><strong>&quot;Reader: You will be TRANSFORMED BY INJURY—vicariously and literally as you read this book of poems.</strong></font></font></span></font></p> <p align="left"> <font face="Verdana">&quot;There is a message in this poetry that is poignant and essential for all who are recovering from traumatic brain injury and for those who love them. This poetry will transform you: Mind, Body and Spirit. You will feel your skin prickle; your heart and lungs open and your mind relax in a way that prose would never penetrate. You will become aware of the greater importance of your Life experience, transformed by injury. You will know the stages and transitions that occur on the healing journey with Traumatic Brain Injury. You will experience a wakeup call mentally and spiritually to declare the purpose of your life. As you read <em>A Life Interrupted,</em> you will be interrupted to become more authentic and whole, while wholly different than before.</font></p> <p align="center"><font face="Verdana">&quot;This book should be required for every neurologist graduating from residency. It should be in every VA hospital for soldiers returning from war. It should be at the bedside of all who suffer at home. A caretaker should gently read these words out loud to heal and be healed.</font></p> <p align="center"><font face="Verdana">&quot;The book not only outlines the TBI journey but specifies resources for healing. The best of the best therapy and therapists in this country are listed at the end of the book. These approaches hold hope for all who have chosen this challenging and difficult life in transition. To those who work with TBI and those such as Louise Mathewson who live beyond it, we owe our gratitude and awe.&quot;<br /><br /></font><font face="Verdana" size="2"><strong>Linda W. Peterson-St. Pierre, Ph.D.<br /></strong></font><font size="2"><font face="Verdana">Emeritus Professor, <strong>University of Nevada School of Medicine<br /></strong>Marriage &amp; Family Therapist<br />Author of  <em><strong>Children in Distress: A Guide for Screening Children’s Art, Clear Vision: The Power of Story</strong></em> <strong>&amp;</strong></font> <em><font face="Verdana"><strong>Write Out Loud: A Guide for Families who Live and Work in War and War-Like Environments</strong></font></em></font></p><p align="center"></p><p align="center"><font face="Verdana" size="2"><strong>“Shattering, haunting, humbling and ultimately triumphant,</strong> this poetic memoir takes us deep into a damaged brain and the courageous crawl back to a reclaimed life. Language, once lost, returns to shimmer on the page, each poem an altar to the angel’s promise that in trauma there is transformation. This collection will surely provide hope, identification, and voice for those who struggle with TBI, and those who love and serve them. It is a brilliant and urgently needed addition to the literature in therapeutic writing.”<br /><br /><strong>Kathleen Adams, LPC</strong><br />Director, Center for Journal Therapy &amp; Therapeutic Writing Institute</font></p><p align="center"></p><p align="center"><font face="Verdana" size="2"><strong>“Life can change in a moment.</strong> This collection of poems by Louise Mathewson provides record of a shattering car accident and the aftermath of a brain injury. Ms. Mathewson awakens from a coma to find her self and her life irrevocably changed. At first, she is unable to walk or make herself understood. Her brain could no longer abstract or remember. Although the setbacks are many, she is able to begin again. The collection will provide hope to patients ‘transformed by injury’ and their families. Writing itself proves to be a transformative act. The poems reveal her strong spirit, resilience and the step by step journey of recovery.”<br /><br /><strong>Sheila Packa</strong><br />Duluth Poet Laureate 2010-2012<br />&amp; author of <em><strong>The Mother Tongue</strong>, <strong>Echo &amp; Lightning</strong>,</em> <br /><em><strong>Cloud Birds</strong></em> &amp; <em><strong>Migrations: Poetry and Prose for Life’s Transitions</strong></em></font></p><p align="center"></p><p align="center"><font face="Verdana" size="2"><em><strong>“A Life Interrupted</strong></em><strong> is a must read for anyone who has experienced loss, illness, crisis, or traumas—physical or emotional.</strong> This heart rendering account of one person’s journey from chaos to serenity leads to the discovery that ‘Traumas are about transformation.’ Mathewson takes you from the path<br /> of shock and confusion onto one of hope and possibilities.<br />I loved every word.”<br /><br /><strong>Alice C. Nixon MSW, LCSW</strong><br />Trauma Specialist<br /><a title="Brain Breakthrough website" href="http://www.brainbreakthrough.com">www.BrainBreakthrough.com</a> &amp; <a href="http://www.letsaskalice.com/">www.LetsAskAlice.com</a></font></p>