“You’re alive, but you feel a part of you is vanished. You look in the mirror, all body parts are intact. You breathe --A wave of emotion courses through your body like an agonizing muscle spasm. You look again in the mirror. You just know something is missing. You feel the emptiness in your chest. It will never be replaced. It can never be replaced. Does anyone else see it? Can anyone else see it? Perhaps in time you will learn how to adapt. But how could you? It’s gone. They’re gone. And you never got the chance to say good-bye. Or, I love you.”
Elegy that I wrote for my brother on his one year death anniversary, February 13, 2007
Robyn Faust Gabe was born in East Meadow, New York. She was raised and schooled in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Dr. Gabe graduated in 2000 from Florida Atlantic University with a Bachelors of Arts Degree in Political Science. After that, Dr. Gabe attended Florida International University and graduated in 2004 with her Masters of Public Administration.
During her master’s program, Dr. Gabe interned with the assistant city manager for the City of North Bay Village where she learned how local cities manage records containing sensitive information.
After her master’s program, Dr. Gabe worked at a local university in the financial aid office. In that position, she helped counsel students regarding the responsibility of loans and oversaw the student work study program. Then the unimaginable happened; her only sibling died. She lost her job, friends, and family members. The multiple losses within a two-year period triggered a downward spiral and created many interpersonal conflicts.
In 2010, Dr. Gabe decided to take her pain combined with multiple losses to benefit other bereaved siblings. She enrolled at Nova Southeastern College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences, Conflict Analysis, and Resolution doctoral program. There she studied sibling bereavement issues utilizing theoretical lenses associated with the conflict analysis and resolution field.
In 2016, Dr. Gabe graduated with her Ph.D. She is currently the office manager of a personal injury law firm. She has spoken at bereavement meetings and was a speaker at a national grief conference.
Comments