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There is a battle raging in the minds of everybody."
Tragedy can often lead to a major crossroads within the mind and heart. One either spirals in their grief, or the sorrow becomes a catalyst to deeper exploration through healthier channels. The latter, undoubtedly, is true for the poet, who lost her husband of forty-four years in a tragic accident yet found solace in the power of prayer and the emotive nature of the written word.
Though anxieties and fears are embedded in the natural course of people’s material lives, the poet effectively shows that prayer and faith in the Lord is the most optimal coping mechanism, a surefire way to yield something redeemable from a distinctively negative and heartbreaking event. In poems like “Life’s New Challenges,” Goh succinctly depicts the loneliness of loss while highlighting how, almost instantaneously, the survivors are forced to simultaneously grieve and handle increased responsibilities that their loved ones would normally tend to.
Along with prayer, Goh makes it very clear that it is okay to feel pain and even fear from the myriad changes happening around the individual enduring the challenge. However, from her own experience, the pathway to healing is through the divine and a renewed focus of the mind. Digging deeper, the focus of Goh’s poetry compilation transitions to embracing one’s uniqueness and not being immersed solely in the chase for dollars but rather understanding the meaning of life from the spiritual realm. Furthermore, the poems use passages from scripture and prominent biblical figures like David and Saul to help audiences understand the importance of living in the moment. Ultimately, Goh’s poetry is a classic example of seeing a glass as half full rather than half empty, showing how one can live life with purpose despite going through the darkness of life.