Losing a loved one is always a tragic life event. That loss became even more difficult when Stephanie Sloane lost her husband of fifty-eight years just as New York City was going into the COVID-19 lockdown. Like so many others to come, the funeral was on ZOOM. And Stephanie was left to face life alone, in an apartment meant for two, without the comfort of family or friends for hugs and a shoulder to cry on. One morning she took pen to paper to express her feelings, and then did so every day through June 8^th when New York City started to open up to life again. Those daily feelings and emotions are now shared in this poignant collection of poems. Accompanied by the authors photos, Dear Me beautifully expresses her personal loss and grief and then her realization of the loss and grief of everyone during this time. And then finally... glimmers of hope.

A native New Yorker, born and raised in the Bronx, who now lives in Manhattan, Stephanie Sloane has had an eclectic career encompassing many creative endeavors mostly in the art and theater worlds. She has written two plays, "Toujours L'Amour" which was staged in NYC last year, and "Bronx Light/Bronx Dark." The loss of her husband at the same time as the pandemic prompted her to write her first, but not her last, book of poetry with photographs.