When Catherine Robinson’s husband died in May 2017, she was left devastated and totally unmoored. As she lay awake, night after night, in her empty home in Melbourne, Australia, Catherine — who was in her late forties at the time — realized her overwhelming feeling was loneliness. Catherine had supportive friends and a loving family.
But she felt isolated nonetheless, as though no one could really understand what she was going through. “I tried to talk to other people. I even joined a widows group, but it was very difficult to relate to other people,” Catherine tells CNN Travel today.
Her late husband Pete was ill for some time before he passed away. During his illness, caring for Pete became Catherine’s “whole life.” She dedicated every moment to easing his pain, helping him through the day.
This wasn’t easy, but caring for Pete gave Catherine a purpose, even as she worried about the future. “Then, all of a sudden I went from having this purpose every day to waking up in the morning and not knowing, thinking ‘What do I need to get out of bed for?’” says Catherine. Months passed in a blur.
Catherine’s feeling of isolation only got worse. “And then, in the age of the internet, I just thought, ‘Well, maybe I’ll go online. Across the world, there has got to be somebody else who knows what I’m feeling.
’ “And by pure chance, I came across Randy’s blog.” Catherine stumbled across the blog following a Google search. And after scanning thro.
