“Jeff Sutherland’s Still Life is the training manual all of us need for how to face terrible loss and redefine the good life. If only Job could have read it.”
– Mo Rocca, CBS Sunday Morning
Father, husband, athlete, medical doctor, Jeff Sutherland had built a perfect life for himself and his family…then he noticed that he was losing strength in his left arm. Diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), he lost his abilities to walk and speak within two years and, confined to a wheelchair, was forced to retire from his life’s work as a physician at forty-three. Not long after, he was locked in his own inanimate body, unable to eat, drink, or breathe without assistance. Despite these limitations, Sutherland made peace with his disease and, surrounded by his loving family, found happiness again – only to suffer another soul-shattering loss. His story, laboriously written on a device that tracks his eye movements on a keyboard, is a testament to both the human will’s ability to overcome unspeakable tragedy, and the power of familial love to heal incomprehensible pain.
Note: Dr. Sutherland has ALS and cannot physically sign the book, but he has a signature stamp that we will apply for him. Please email us at serina@sutherlandhousebooks.com if you have any questions.