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Dealing with untimely and tragic death of one’s own children is the most harrowing experience for any parent. British dad, Dean Munro, turned to the written word to cope with grief when his 10-week-old baby passed away.
“The words were an outlet for me,” Dean, 34, told Khaleej Times
The result is Monte Series, the magical children’s book series in honour of Monte Gray Noel Munro, who was born with myotubular myopathy, a rare condition that causes severe muscle weakness and breathing difficulties. He passed away in June 2021.
“Each day I would sit in the hospital that Monte never left, reading him children’s books,” said Dean, who is originally from Brighton, England.
“It was my way of communicating with him and it built a special bond,” he said. Dean and his wife, Kirsty Munro, own and run the Locks by Loulou beauty boutiques in Dubai.
Dean says he, at any point, thought, he was going to write a story about his son. “But the ideas just came to me and I put pen to paper. I needed to find a way of channelling my grief into something positive. This is our first Christmas since we lost Monte, but knowing families around the world will be talking about our son and enjoying reading Monte's First Christmas together, will give us strength,” Dean told Khaleej Times.
Now, just eight months after losing his beautiful baby boy, Dean’s first book, Monte’s Christmas, has already sold more than 200 copies.
Monte’s Stories books are based on events that Monte would have experienced, such as his first Christmas, and tales of his imagination running mild.
“Monte's Stories is a way of me and my family being able to envision and share those memorable life events, like playing football or having his first birthday, to keep his memory alive - maybe other families who have lost children will be inspired to do the same.”
Dean started writing a few days after Monte died. “I picked up a pen and began to write. The words were running through my head and I felt I had to put pen to paper straight away. Having never written much more than my own name, the words came straight from my heart,” said Dean.
This Christmas story is the first in the Monte’s Stories series, which Dean says will continue as long as he feels inspired to write.
“After getting back from our travels in the summer I found myself not being able to write,” said Dean.
“Then one morning at 4am a light bulb went off and the theme of the second book came to me. Now I can’t wait to get it published.”
The couple has generated donations of more than £20,000 (Dh97,377) for the Myotubular Trust from a golf tournament in the UK and hope to continue more fundraising efforts.
“My outlook on life has completely changed. I have taken the most unimaginable situation and tried to put a positive spin on it,” said Dean.
“I feel like I have created something really special. Monte’s first story is now out there for the world to read and I am not going to stop here – I have already written four Monte books which will follow soon. These books will help Monte’s legacy live on. They are written from the heart.”
Monte’s Stories can be purchased at amazon.co.uk and authorshouse.com
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