Catie Hartsfield’s life changed dramatically on May 23, 2004. The small business owner and mother of four teenagers received the news that her son had fallen 180 feet off a cliff. This book is the true story of this mother’s journey and the ripple effects the accident had on her and her family’s life.
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catie, all i can say is wow.what an amazing and strong woman and mother you are, you showed tough love which is the hardest thing a mother can do, i know. i have a 21 year year old very much like your son. i have two younger brothers and when our father, grandfather, and grandmother all died within 16 months time, i had to be strong for them, and i was, but i felt such happiness in your book when you finally took those 2 weeks when you were alone to finally let go. to paint and cry and think, i did that too. everyone needs time to get over a tragedy and i am glad you were able to let it all out and move on. thank you and your family for being so honest and sincere. i am truly thankful that your family has stayed together and bonded after all you all have been through. God bless you all
Jennifer, Thank you for your support over our story. I am sincerely grateful that our story spoke to you. It is never easy, we all face our “cliffs” in life. What’s important is that we come through it to the other side. Catie
Catie, as a man, I would like to say that your family’s story had me captured from the 1st page. My wife Mary said that I needed to read this book and I could not put it down. I couldn’t believe the tenacity that you displayed and the level of commitment that was evidenced in the round-the-clock care that you gave to your son at the expense of your own health.
This is not a book written for women from a woman’s point of view. This book crosses gender as well as age group lines as a must read to get to see the “realness” of family life and how, through the grace of God, prevails and even prospers under the most stressful conditions.
Thank you for your honest, open, transparent and even “graphic” account of your family’s journey from the Gorge!
See you Saturday at Joseph Beth.
Blessings to you & yours…
Mark
Mark,
Thank you for your support. It warms my heart to hear from a man, and a man’s point of view. Men get that this story although told from a Mom’s viewpoint, it is also told by the viewpoint of the men in my family via journals. Steve was essential to the recovery of our son. Thank you for your comment.
Catie
Dear “Hartsfields”, I wanted to wish you all a happy 9th anniversary and wanted to thank you all for sharing yourselves so intimately at the Joseph Beth signing. I was googling hiking falls and came across a website called http://www.hikerhell.com and referred your book to the site master Brian Q.
Blessings to you all…
Mark
Yesterday, while trying to keep the pain from the shingles I’ve acquired at bay…I finished the last 150 pages of a totally remarkable book, “The Year of the Cicadas”. I ordered my signed copy in December but for some reason I didn’t start to read it until last week. Hmmm…the timing means something, I believe.
Anyway, “The Year of the Cicadas” is just about the most honest and transparent book/account I’ve ever read. These folks are ‘real’ and through Catie’s words the whole family shares their raw pain and awe-inspiring victories with us. What a unique privilege to have been allowed behind the scenes with them and read how they struggled with terrifying physical injuries and heart-breaking emotional and mental pain.
I am honored to have it in my library and have already started to tell everyone I know to get this exquisitely painful AND beautiful book!
Mary,
Thank you so much for your kind words, and for going the extra mile by telling your friends about our book. Have you signed up to receive our blog posts yet? If not you can do it here on our website.
Catie
Yes, I have signed up for the blog posts as well. I’ve promoted artist and writer friends for year, and so have sent emails and a post on Facebook to encourage folks to read this book! My husband and I plan to be at the book signing on May 4th, too. Blessings!
I was privileged to read your wonderful and inspiring book which I won on goodreads, and have encouraged others to read it as well, for it touches the heart and soul of parents everywhere. I have spent much time–way too much time– in the hospital with my daughter having had 3 kidney transplants, my first grandson who lived just 13 agonizing days and my youngest grandson who spent his first 4 months of life in the hospital. The journey for a family during their hospital stay and recovery afterwards is a tremendous challenge, to say the least, and certainly draws one nearer to God. I applaud you for your courage in sharing your family’s story. A marvelous book. May God continue to bless you always. Brenda
Brenda, Thank you for your kind words and for taking the time to reach out to us. It sounds as if you have had a rough go of it as well. It means a lot to me to know that someone like you who has spent so much time as a care giver finds our story to helpful. Keep spreading the word, our marketing plan is one person, one story at a time.
Catie your amazing & triumphant story couldn’t have entered my life at a more unique time. I grieved with you as a mother and wife; your strength is astounding. Ive been dealing with an “internal” issue and your story and advise encourages me to face it, deal with it and see where it takes me. God bless you!
Esther,
Thank you so much for taking the time to read and to comment about our book. My fondest hope was that by sharing our story, and my many disfunction’s would help others. It was my readers who pre-read the book that encouraged me to add the section about how I “came” through and made the change. We all keep things buried deep inside of ourselves, some worse than others. It takes courage to bring them to the light, but then the healing can begin. Hugs, to you, Catie
Remember Jeannie from Anthem in Cincinnati? I am her daughter, My husband and I have a 20 year old son who went to Nelson Ledges a lot his senior year of high school. Thankfully, he always made it home safe, but i worried myself sick. Mom highly recommends I read this book. It is next on my list. Looking forward to it
I am so happy to hear that you did not get that “phone call” that we as parents are so afraid of receiving. I hope you enjoy our story and stay in touch.
Jennifer, Sorry for the delay in responding, I just found some older comments that I missed. Thank you for reading our story, my hope is that it will help someone else out there who is going through a tough time. Give Jeannie my love, Catie
Thank you everyone for your wonderful reviews. We are now up to twenty-five reviews on Amazon….Our readers are the best. We could not have done it without you.
I received my signed copy in the mail on Saturday…. And after reading till 3:15 am I made myself go to bed. This story is riveting… I felt a connection with every person in it. I cried… I laughed… I was angry…and finally understanding… I took away so many meaningful life lessons, and as a parent there are so many times you ask yourself…are you doing the right thing?? This book speaks to you and confirms that yes… there is NO better “right thing” than your gut. Thank you for sharing your story.. all parts even ones that no one wants to talk about. I am TRULY a better person after reading it.. “I had given away my power, when I did it aloud someone else to fill in” No TRUER words were ever spoken and once again thank you for speaking them..
I finished it this weekend as well. It is a compelling read that I could not put down. The rollercoaster emotional ride and clearly honest feelings, open wounds, and raw nerves make for a dramatic story and leaves you awake at night thinking about how life can be both fragile and incredibly resilient at the same time.
I finished your book last night. It was truly inspiring. What a gift you have given the world in this book! Thank you.
Hi Catie, I finished your book last night and couldn’t sleep thinking of all the powerful lessons I discovered along the journey of your story. Thanks so much for putting your vulnerability into print. Your courage, tenacity and open heart have touch me in a very profound way. THANK YOU!!! I believe through your story Women/Mom’s will continue to unite, realizing we are not alone in our emotions, EVERY single one of them….
Tracy, Thank you for taking the time out of your busy life to spend time reading our book and discovering our journey. I am thrilled that you got so much out of the book and for sharing your thoughts.
Very excited to get my hands on your book and read it. You are an amazing woman and I admire you! Congratulations on your success! Love you, Alicia
Hi Alicia, thank you for posting your photo on fb and for reading our book. Let me know what your thoughts and take aways are.
Catie, I am so proud of you taking on this task and completing it. I can’t wait to read the book. Just knowing you and your family I am sure this will be such an inspiration to all of us. God Bless you always. Much love, Charlotte
Charlotte, Thank you for all of your support and faith in me. This has been a labor of love, and I can’t wait to find out what you think about the book.