Still everyone, including the abbot, had said that he was running away from his grief. They'd had no idea what they were talking about. He'd cradled his grief, almost to the point of loving it. For so long he refused to give it up, because leaving it behind was like leaving her.
In "The Mermaid Chair" by Sue Monk Kidd, a character grapples with profound grief, which others perceive as an act of fleeing from his emotions. The abbot and those around him misinterpret his attachment to sorrow, thinking he is avoiding it, but he sees it differently.
He embraces his grief, nurturing it to the extent that it becomes an integral part of his identity. For him, relinquishing this pain would mean detaching from memories of a loved one, making letting go a complex emotional battle intertwined with love and loss.
