Thomas Rose signs a copy of his book “Balloon in a Box.” The second edition of it came out in 2023. Photos by Nathan Pace.

By Nathan Pace
InkFreeNews

Thomas Rose did not think he would become a public speaker and an author in his 80s, but his story is one of recovery from loss. Rose, a Goshen native, can plainly see how time changed after his wife, Joyce, passed away in 2019.

“That’s where I am. My life totally changed from 78 years to 84,” Rose said. “When I lost her that changed my life significantly.”

Joyce had dealt with breast cancer in 2004-05 but lived through the first battle. Rose had 12 more years with her before the next round began in 2017.

“Everything was fine until 2017 when they told her she had six to eight months to live. Being the tough old broad that she was, she hung around for two years,” Rose said with a smile. “In those 12 years we got to do everything together. The two years of chemo and radiation took a lot out of her. She was still tired a lot of the time but she managed through it.”

Her final three weeks saw a diet of only water and pain pills while on hospice care. The four months that followed after her death is what Rose calls his “black period.”

“I didn’t care about anything. I didn’t want anything. I have to say after she died I kicked God out of my life,” Rose said.

In November, he began enjoying life again and started to journal his daily thoughts. He restored his faith in the process and a friend suggested to Rose to turn his journal entries into a book. The result was his book “Balloon in a Box.”

“Someone had told me grief is like a ball in a box. When the ball bounces around and touches the sides, the emotions come back with remembrance. I said it’s more like a balloon in a box. All of my memories are in the balloon. People have told me the same thing, that I was afraid to move on because I didn’t want to leave her behind. So now with my balloon I can move forward with all of my memories and she can go with me,” Rose said.

Thomas Rose records his “Senior Talk” podcast in Wakarusa and also writes when he visits the local coffee shop.

Through writing, he also began to do public speaking. He even does a podcast he records at Wakarusa Missionary Church called “Senior Talk.” Senior pastor Chris Knight suggested he record at the church.

“He said, ‘We just use this studio on Tuesdays. It’s yours,’” Rose said.

His son, Brock, is the director of the Wakarusa Chamber of Commerce, another reason he makes routine visits to the town.

Since he began writing, Rose has also done well over 100 public speaking appearances to help seniors deal with the loss of a loved one. He has spoken mainly in the Midwest including Detroit, Chicago and Indianapolis. One interaction that has stayed with him is a woman who came up to him after a speaking event.

“She said, ‘You got me out of my black period.’ I said, ‘Well, how long has it been?’ She said, ‘12 years.’ This lady that was with her said, ‘She is not lying to you. I saw her smile for the first time in 12 years today, out of all the stories you shared about your wife and life.’”

Another memorable moment was when a college senior called Rose to thank him for his book. The student said his book helped his mother after the death of his father and also helped him make a big decision about proposing to his girlfriend.

“He said, ‘I asked my mom, how do I know I’m in love, and she gave me your book to read.’ In a way, I guess I wrote a love story,” Rose said.