praise for a Monday in February

  • "A Monday in February is a poignant, heartfelt, and powerful recollection of a mother’s worst nightmare – the death of a beloved child by suicide. Peppered with quotes from fellow grief sojourners, scripture, poetry, and searingly honest journal entries, Lily walks the reader through her journey of plummeting into the depths of hell and grief. As she begins to find meaning and beauty out of the ashes of her suffering and loss, we get a peek into the mystery of what it means to live in the paradox of joy and sorrow, heaven and hell, the before and after."

    Catherine “Katie” Skurja, author of Paradox Lost


  • “A Monday in February is raw and honest, and scary, but somehow in the Spirit every tear and honest cry leaks hope and wisdom. Thank you Lily for your courage, which I know is not courage, but desperation, yet desperation you courageously embraced, which in and through you has become light in the terrifying darkness for us all.”

    C. Baxter Kruger, Ph. D., author of the international bestsellers The Shack Revisited and Patmos

  • “We say thank you for going beyond your own pain and turning it into beacons of hope and signposts along the road. Indeed, in the utter acceptance of what will never be understood, the goodness of God is still known. I not only recommend this book to parents who have lost a child but also to those of us who have our quivers full, to perceive with a new clarity that the only actual way to see our lives and one another, is in the light of eternity. Forever thankful for this gift of hope and perspective"

    Lydia du Toit, co-founder of Mirror Word

A Monday in February is an invitation to walk through the darkest valleys of grief and emerge with a deeper understanding of love, resilience and hope.

In February 2021, Lily Crowder's world was shattered when her youngest son,

Ezekiel, took his own life at the tender age of fifteen years old.

Ezekiel, known as “Zeke” by many, was full of life, charismatic, kind-hearted and known for a smile and sense of humor that could light up any room. His death sent shockwaves through his family and community, leaving them to wrestle with understanding mental health.

In this deeply personal account, Lily opens her heart, sharing the raw, unfiltered grief of a mother who has lost what can never be replaced. Through journal entries, personal memories and spiritual reflections, she navigates the impossible - learning to live with both sorrow and joy.

This is not just a story of grief and loss, this is a story of transformation.