Grief in Spring
Anne's House of Dreams, Chapters 11-20
Dear Kindred Spirits,
This was a heavy week, filled with learning of the tragedies of others and ending with Anne’s own tragedy. The section begins with the story of the difficult life of Leslie Moore and with the series first mention of suicide.
It is believed that L.M. Montgomery died by suicide. I always find it so painful to read books that deal with depression and suicide when I know the author struggled with these things in their own lives. So much of the Anne series feels like an escape from the tragedies of the real world, but the story of Leslie Moore marks an end of that departure.
A secret swimming hole that I dipped in this week as I admired the awakening of the woods.
With Leslie, Anne once again invites someone into the refuge of her world, with the goal of making their life better. A friendship is certainly formed, however she finds a barrier that she cannot seem to cross.
“Her friends had hitherto been wholesome, normal, merry girls like herself, with only the average trials of human are and bereavement to shadow their girlish dreams”
Even with Anne’s early childhood trials, the tragedy of Leslie’s life is so beyond Anne’s experiences, making it difficult for her to connect deeply.
Marilla, Mrs. Lynde and the twins come to Four Winds for Christmas! This is Marilla’s first Christmas away from Green Gables and the furthest away from home she’s ever been. I can’t help but feel proud of her for stepping so far beyond her comfort zone, all of which is of course done for her Anne. She even plans to return for a month in the Spring! It felt so natural to have these characters grace the landscape of Anne’s life here.
New Years Eve is a lovely fest in the lighthouse with Captain Jim, his nephew, Leslie, and Marshall Elliott.
Captain Jim cheers, “I wish you all the best year of your lives, mate”.
This reminds me of something my Granddad would say. When I turned 16 he told me “these are the best years of your life, kid” and I kind of felt disappointed at that sentiment, 16, really? High school is supposed to be the best years of my life. But then he said it again the next year, and the next, and every year to follow. It took me until my early 20s to see what he was doing. Each new year is to be the best year of your life.
As we approach Spring, it is clear that Anne is pregnant though it is never actually clearly stated. Marilla returns in June to be present during this time and she is there in time for the birth of Anne’s daughter, Joyce. Anne’s intense joy is followed just hours later with absolute heartbreak when they lose their beautiful baby girl.
As we move forward, we will see how Anne copes with this tremendous loss in her life. She fears that she will never be happy again. She is living with grief in her glorious Spring, a time in which she normally would be gleefully embracing, but this year she can’t find it in herself to love the world in that deep way that she always has. A world in which Anne is not happy is hard to stomach, but she is a person who feels deeply. She loves deeply, she lives deeply, so of course she will also grieve deeply.
How do you feel reaching this point in the series? There has of course been sadness and grief in the series before, but this felt heavier to me. What do you wish for Anne as we move into this next chapter of grief for her?
Thank you for reading
Thank you for reading and joining me on this read-along of Anne of Green Gables!
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Your bosom friend,
Bri
Anne's pregnancy & the loss of baby Joy was clearly based on personal experience: she lost her second child, a boy she named Hugh after her father, in 1914, a few years before she wrote this book.
About 10 years ago, my husband & I toured the manse in Leaskdale, Ontario (northeast of Toronto), where Montgomery's husband was minister, and where she lived when she had her children and wrote many of her books (including this one). After the tour, we attended a one-woman play at the church called "Maud of Leaskdale," based on Montgomery's diaries. It included Maud's pregnancies, and the death of baby Hugh. The wonderful actress playing Maud was in tears as she spoke, holding an empty cradle in her arms, and so was I. The play is still performed at the church a couple of times every summer, and it is well worth attending if you are in the area then!
(Like Maud, I also lost a baby, in 1998. I can confirm she absolutely nails the experience in this book, even though our losses were decades apart.)
A while ago I accidently read a review, which spoilt for me Anne's loss. I regretted knowing it and expecting it. I expected a stillbirth, but little Joyce living for one day was even sadder and made me feel grateful for modern medicine. Not that babies aren't dying, but in many cases they can be saved now. Gilbert was helpless. Anne is grieving, but so is Gilbert, I imagine, though it's not shown. I also know they will have more children and I'm looking forward to that.
On a more positive note, I really like the new characters, especially Captain Jim and Miss Cornelia. I remember your question whether L.M. Montgomery was a feminist writer - Miss Cornelia is another proof she was! I just loved her wrap-up: "Wasn’t that like a man?"
I didn't know L.M. Montgomery committed suicide. She seems such a positive person always noticing the beautiful in life, though there's a lot of tragedy, too. It's weird that often the seemingly positive people commit suicide...