- Are you interested in participating in the following research project?
- What does it mean to love someone in absence, after loving them in presence?
Sarah Penwarden is a counsellor whose doctoral research study brings together two of her interests. As a counsellor, Sarah has met with clients who have told her of how they continue to experience the presence of a loved family member after death. Sarah is also interested in poetry. She uses poetry in counselling, including writing poetry for clients. These two areas come together in Sarah’s doctoral research with the University of Waikato, in a study titled, “Conversations about absence and presence: Remembering a lost partner in poetic form.”
In her research, Sarah will focus on how a person’s relationship with a loved one is transformed and changed after death. She is interested in the ways people remember their lost loved one, through noticing again a loved one’s participation in their life, whether this is through dreams, memories, or through living out their legacy.
This year, Sarah will interview about ten people for this qualitative study, in individual interviews that will focus on remembering the person and their contribution. Sarah will then write a series of poems based exactly on the participant’s words, which she will send to them. These poems will be a record of the research conversation, and will capture some of the stories the person shared at the interview. A second round of interviews will focus on the participants’ experiences of and thoughts about the poetry.
The criteria for being a participant is that a person has lost a spouse or partner at least two years previously, and that they wish to tell their story at this time and remember the person. If you are interested in being a participant in this project, please contact Sarah by email: sarah.penwarden.research@gmail.com
