This Side of the Sky by Laura Wifler: A Book That Found Me at the Right Time

Sometimes you choose a book because the cover catches your eye. Sometimes you choose one because you’ve heard wonderful things about the author. And sometimes, a book seems to find its way into your hands at exactly the moment you need its words.

This Side of the Sky by Laura Wifler was that book for me.

I read this beautiful collection of poetry during a season when my family has been facing some pretty scary things. It has been one of those times in life when I’ve found myself leaning into God a little harder, seeking Him a little more intentionally, and reminding myself over and over that even when I cannot see what He is doing, He is still here.

Then I opened this book.

When Heavy Things Become Beautiful Words

Throughout This Side of the Sky, Laura writes about grief, family, motherhood, friendship, marriage, suffering, growing older, faith, Heaven, and so many of the beautiful and complicated pieces of being human.

These aren’t necessarily light subjects.

But there is something about the way she puts them into poetry that makes them feel almost like a melody.....a beautiful weaving together of grief and hope, love and longing, sorrow and peace.

She doesn’t pretend the painful parts of life aren’t painful. She doesn’t wrap everything up in a pretty little bow or give us easy Christian answers to difficult things.

Instead, there is honesty.

And I think that may be what I loved most.

Her honesty about life is beautifully intertwined with her love for Christ. There is room in these poems to grieve. There is room to wrestle. There is room to acknowledge that sometimes this life hurts deeply.

But there is also hope.

There is always this gentle reminder that God is near.

A Book That Made Me Cry.....and Think

I cried a lot while reading this book.

And I don't necessarily mean that in a sad way.

Some words have a way of reaching places in your heart you didn’t realize needed to be reached. They make you stop. They make you sit with something for a moment. Sometimes they even make you look at your own life differently.

That happened to me while reading This Side of the Sky.

This book moved something in me.

In fact, it helped inspire an important decision in my own life..... one that I think had already been stirring in my heart, but perhaps I needed the courage to finally make.

There was one particular line that stopped me in my tracks:

“Don’t you see? You have this one, grand life. In Him, you are allowed to live it lightly.”

I sat with that one.

Because how often do we carry things God never asked us to carry?

How often do we become so weighed down by fear, expectations, grief, responsibilities, what-ifs, and everything happening around us that we forget this life is also a gift?

Not a perfect life.

Not a painless life.

But a life we are allowed to actually live.

And when our lives are held by Christ, perhaps we can loosen our grip just a little. Perhaps we can trust Him with the things that feel too heavy for our own hands.

For the Poetry Reader, and the Woman Who Thinks She Isn’t One

If you already love poetry, I think you’ll find so much to appreciate in this collection.

But if you’re thinking, Cryssie, I’m really not a poetry person, I still think this book is for you.

You don’t have to study poetry to understand these words. You don’t have to dissect every line or search for some hidden meaning. You don't have to be a theologian to understand these beautiful words.

You can simply let the words meet you where you are.

Read a poem with your morning coffee.

Tuck the book beside your Bible.

Read a few pages before bed.

Underline the words that make you stop and think, I needed that today.

And maybe send a poem to a friend who needs those words too.

This Side of Heaven

There is something beautifully bittersweet about the title This Side of the Sky.

Because that’s where we are.

We know what Scripture promises. We know Heaven is real. We know Christ has already won. We know how the story ultimately ends.

And yet, we’re still living here.

On this side of the sky.

Here, there is marriage and friendship and laughter and family and ordinary Tuesday mornings.

There is also grief. There are scary phone calls. There are unanswered questions. There are prayers we whisper through tears and seasons when trusting God feels less like a beautiful inspirational quote and more like choosing Him again every single morning.

Maybe that is why this book touched me so deeply during this particular season.

It reminded me that those things can exist together.

I can be scared and still trust God.

I can grieve and still have hope.

I can acknowledge that something hurts and still believe He is good.

I can hold the heaviness of this world while remembering that this world is not the end of the story.

And somewhere in the middle of all of that, I can still notice the beautiful things God has placed around me.

My Final Thoughts

This Side of the Sky is beautifully written, deeply moving, Christ-centered, and full of hope.

It is the kind of book you don’t simply finish and put back on the shelf. It is one you keep nearby. One you underline. One you return to when life gets heavy.

For me, it will always be a book tied to a very particular season of my life..... a season when I needed to lean into God, and these words helped remind me of the peace found in doing exactly that.

I believe this book will change lives.

I know it has already left its mark on mine.

And I’m incredibly thankful it found me at exactly the right time.

Book: This Side of the Sky
Author: Laura Wifler
Perfect for: Christian women, poetry lovers, anyone walking through grief or a difficult season, and anyone needing a gentle reminder of the hope we have in Christ.