Journey Preface

November 5, 2005 marked the tenth anniversary of our son’s death. I miss and think of him everyday. I will always be thankful that he chose my husband and me to be his parents. I believe that his spirit, his soul, had work to do and we were chosen. I also believe our spirit, our souls chose him, as we had and have work to do. God gave us the privilege to have him, even if it was in earthly time a short while. We were and are truly blessed. I can only now truly thank God for this tiny miracle. God made Mitchell to affect many people. I am honored that God gave me, David, Johanna, and Peder-our family.

I believe angels work through you when you least expect it. There are so many people who have no idea how much they have helped me. I believe the angels worked through them and I would like to think that angels work through me. I hope that I can help others too.

I started to write this book about a month after my son died. I wrote the book in spite of God. God was not going to be included, which is why it took me so long to finish it. Once I allowed myself to remember how God carried me through I was able to write more freely. The story of my son is written from my memories and also later from my journal entries. I wrote this book for many reasons, but mainly, I want the memory of my beautiful son, Mitchell David Haugan to always be remembered.

I wrote this book to heal my heart and my soul. It is written strictly from a mother’s point of view. I have tried not to speak for my husband or family members and friends. This is not a book about how you should do things or to tell you what is right or wrong. I believe a loving parent knows what is right for their child. I do, however hope that you will find comfort if you have had a child die. If you are reading this book and have not been through the pain of losing a child, I hope that you become more aware of some emotions a parent can feel, therefore being able to comfort those in need. This is my story. Thank you for letting me share it with you.