On Mother’s Day we sang the song “It Is Well with My Soul” at church. At first, I thought this a strange song for Mother’s Day, but as I thought more about it, it made sense. If you are a mother and can say it is well with my soul all must be good in your world.

The author who penned this song was remarkable. I read about his plight and marveled at his faith. Horatio G. Spafford was a practicing attorney. After the Chicago Fire, he lost much of the property he owned. He proposed a trip to England to take part in a Christian campaign. At the last minute he was unable to leave on time. He sent his wife and four daughters on ahead.

The ship that they were sailing on was struck by another ship and sank. His wife cabled him that she was “saved alone”. He hurried to her side to comfort her. It was on this trip that he wrote the words to this song.

What amazed me was that the song was not mournful as one might expect. He believes. He looks forward to the coming of the Lord. He knows where his loved ones are.

I especially like the chorus with the echo effect. Since I generally sing alto, I sing the echo. It feels good to sing “It is well with my soul”.

Another musician wrote the melody. Philip P. Bliss, a contemporary of Spafford, was so impressed with Spafford’s words that the melody came easily. While he usually wrote both the words and melody for his music this proves to be the exception.

Can you truly say “It Is Well with My Soul”? I believe that you have to have a clear conscience and a strong faith to be able to make this remark. I cannot imagine losing four daughters – much less all of them at the same time. The grief that he and his wife suffered must have been tremendous. Just to think about a whole family being wiped out is horrendous.

How do you achieve peace? I believe that peace is achieved through faith. I know that faith played a part in my triumph over the death of my first spouse. Before he died, we were spending every day together. I had retired so I was home. He was sick and I knew that I needed to be available to care for him and transport him wherever he needed to be.

My book, “Choose Life” is about my journey. It took me several years until I was able to write it. I have been told that my wanderings have been helpful to others. That is what I intended. It was a dark time in my life. Although I knew that my husband was not able to live long, I hoped for more time. It was not to be. He died about a month after his last surgery.

I used to watch a religious program from California. The minister often quoted scripture that seemed to speak to me. I had a pen and paper nearby and wrote down the verses that he mentioned. For years I had no idea what I was going to do with these and other verses that I collected.

During one of the services the idea of a book came to me. I would go through my first year on my own featuring the verses that spoke to me. The book was a sort of catharsis or a cleansing. I finally put down on paper all of my thoughts and feelings. It helped me heal.

When a loved one dies, you really do begin again. Everyone grieves differently, but there are some commonalities. The commonalities tie people together.

Today I can honestly say “It is well with my soul”.

Ann Swanson writes from her home in Russell, Pa. Contact at hickoryheights1@verizon.net.