Missing Mum, Finding GraceAt nine years old, Marian watched her mother's car roar away down the long gravel road in rural New Zealand. It never truly came back.In the quiet, empty house that followed, she was raised by a devoted but overwhelmed father alongside her younger brother and sister. She grew up carrying a deep, unspoken ache - the profound absence of a mother. The questions. The anger. The quiet sense of being different from every friend whose mum was there at the school gate, the dinner table, and the ordinary moments that shape a child's heart.Decades later, as a wife, mother of four, and grandmother of seven, that old wound was still there - until COVID lockdown stripped away every distraction. In the silence, Marian finally turned toward the pain she had carried for a lifetime.What she discovered changed everything.Through raw honesty, the steady comfort of Scripture, and the powerful metaphor of the family wheel's broken spokes - protection, nurture, guidance, and belonging - she began the courageous work of healing. She shares the tender journey of confronting the mother who left, the unexpected grace of reconciliation before her mother's passing, and the beautiful, imperfect process of learning to mother differently.Missing Mum, Finding Grace is not only a story of what was lost. It is an invitation to what can be redeemed.If you have ever: Carried the ache of a difficult, absent, or emotionally unavailable motherFelt the ripple effects of that wound in your own mothering, relationships, or sense of selfLonged to break generational cycles with grace instead of striving or resentmentBelieved that deep healing is still possible - even after decades - through faith, truth, and courage...then this book is for you.With compassion and hard-won wisdom, Marian offers a path forward. One where pain is transformed into purpose, where the spokes of family connection can be repaired, and where you can step into motherhood and grandmotherhood with greater presence, joy, and the quiet strength of grace.Whether you read it as the complete story or journey through the four standalone parts, Missing Mum, Finding Grace will meet you in the ache and walk with you toward healing and hope.About the Author Marian Louise Lane is a strengths coach, educator, author, and host of the faith-inspired podcast Uplifting Motherhood: A Great Choice. A fifth-generation New Zealander from a rural dairy-farming family in Ohaupo, Aotearoa New Zealand she writes from the intersection of personal story, professional coaching, and deep Christian faith. She is passionate about helping women heal from mother wounds, embrace motherhood as a great choice, and build legacies of presence and belonging for the generations that follow.
