Kerri & Steve Boone: Grief, Loss, and Gratitude

Make Life Less Difficult

My guests today are Kerri and Steve Boone.

Kerri is a registered nurse and a certified health coach, and Steve is the CEO of Wilkins Medical Group. They live in east Tennessee.

My connection with Kerri and Steve is through the beautiful expansion of our family, as one of my nieces married one of their sons a year and a half ago.

You’ll hear more about our meeting and surprising point of connection in our conversation, but in short, after several superficial interactions, Kerri and Steve and I connected deeply through shared experiences of loss and grief.

I do a lot of work in storytelling and this entire podcast is built on the belief that we connect through our stories and that hearing other people share their stories can make life a little less difficult – knowing we aren’t alone. Despite this foundational and core belief that I hold, I continue to be surprised at the unexpected connections that arise – such as this one with Kerri and Steve.

At times people will ask me, does it always need to be a sad story? One of loss or grief? No, absolutely not, and I love telling and hearing funny stories as well. There is the reality, however, that it’s more difficult to share our stories of pain, so when we do and we connect with someone else who understands our pain, that creates a deep resonance in us as humans.

I say all that because this conversation is such a beautiful reflection of it all – why I started this podcast, why I tell my story, and why I invite others to share their stories. While it doesn’t fix things, while it doesn’t take the pain away when there’s pain, sharing does indeed make life a little less difficult.

And Kerri and Steve are committed to sharing their story of loss and grief with others as a way to connect, support, and encourage their fellow sojourners on this journey of life.

Kerri and Steve – thank you! Thank you for sharing these pieces of your story. Thank you for sharing the reflections and transformations you have experienced along with the pain and grief. Thank you for your generosity and desire to be present with others, whatever they might be going through. I’m grateful for this connection.
Make Life Less Difficult