Jennifer’s mom, Patricia Hewitt, had passed away from cancer in 2012 when she was 67. Back then, Jennifer was 33 years old. Now she talks about her journey of healing through the grief in her new book called Inheriting Magic: My Journey Through Grief, Joy, Celebration, and Making Every Day Magical.
Jennifer Love Hewitt learned about her mom’s death from the press before she did
“The part I didn’t put in the book is that the press, they knew my mom had passed before I did,” she said. Her flight back home took so long, like ten-and-a-half hours, and by the time she got there, everyone already knew. “It was such a weird thing for me.”
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Jennifer was far from home when tragedy struck
At a bookshop event in Los Angeles not long ago, she said she was in Monaco for the 52nd Monte Carlo TV Festival when her mom died.
She reflects on the invasive nature of media in her life
“Later on, I was like: ‘But everybody’s always known everything about my life, kind of, before.’ Even breakups, people have been like: ‘He was cheating on you already.’ Really, people? Like, why didn’t you tell me?!”
Why she waited so long to talk about her mom’s passing
Talking to the Hollywood Reporter, Jennifer said she hadn’t talked about her mom’s passing before because she “didn’t have the words.” But now, she hopes the book will honor her memory. “I just didn’t know what to say, and this felt like the right time to talk about her and sort of say: ‘This is what she left behind.’”
The meaning behind her book’s title, Inheriting Magic
Jennifer said the title of her book, Inheriting Magic, was about her mom’s way of making everyone she met feel special.
“I would be on a very successful television show, we would walk into a restaurant, and people couldn’t care less about me; that was my mother. They wanted to know who was the woman that I was standing next to because she was light, she was joy. She made friends with everyone. There was no stranger in the world to her whatsoever.”
Her mother had a unique way of bringing light into the darkest days
If Jennifer had a bad day or a broken heart, her mom would hang Christmas lights because she thought it would lift the mood. “If I had bad cramps, there were lights.”
Jennifer’s emotional tribute to her mom on social media
Jennifer shared a heartfelt Instagram tribute to her mom on the 11th anniversary of her passing, remembering her with love: “11 years ago my life changed in a moment. We didn’t get to say goodbye but I think it’s because we wouldn’t have known how.”
She also wrote, “I see you in my kids everyday. I feel you in things I say and smile because I’m more like you than I thought. I honor you by trying to create magic for my family just like you did for us. I love you deeply. I’m so grateful you were our mom. This day will always hurt because you were that special. Always and forever mom ❤️”
Her mom’s personality continues to inspire Jennifer today
Jennifer’s mom, Patricia, had this amazing gift for making people feel special. “She made friends with everyone. There was no stranger in the world to her whatsoever.”
A new book to share her grief and healing journey
Jennifer’s new book, Inheriting Magic: My Journey Through Grief, Joy, Celebration, and Making Every Day Magical, talks about her healing process and honors her beloved mom’s memory.
Jennifer’s rise to fame and the personal struggles she faced
The 45-year-old star became famous in the ‘90s when she was just a teenager, starring in shows like Party of Five and Kids Incorporated, and also in movies like I Know What You Did Last Summer. But her public life has always been mixed with personal struggles, like losing her mom and the constant presence of the media.
We hope the love and magic Jennifer carries from her mom can help her heal and move forward.
