Dolly Parton leans on faith to navigate loss of husband Carl Dean

Fox News

5 days ago

Dolly Parton shared how she is leaning on her faith as she copes with the loss of her husband of almost 60 years, Carl Dean.
During a new interview with the Associated Press, the 79-year-old country legend opened up about how her belief in God has helped her navigate the grief she has endured since Dean died in March at 82.
"I am a person of faith, and I truly believe that I'm going to see him again someday," Parton said.
"And I see him every day in my memories and in my heart and in all the things that we used to do and all the things that we've built together," she continued. "You just kind of have to learn to kind of make new plans, but that's the hardest part."
Despite Dean's death, the "Jolene" singer said she believes her late husband's spirit is still with her.
"I really feel his presence," Parton said. "I just try to go on because I know I have to. And he was ill for quite a while, and part of me was at peace that he was at peace and not suffering anymore. But that still doesn't make up for the loss and the loneliness of it."
Parton explained that Dean had always been her biggest supporter and insisted that her plans for what she hopes to achieve in the future have not changed in the wake of her loss.
"I just think that I've always had dreams, and I'm always working. My husband understood that. Carl knew that better than anybody, and he was all about it. He was very proud of me," she told AP.
Parton continued, "So when I did lose him, I just thought, 'Well, I'm going to take all of that energy and I'm just going to put that back into other things, and I'll keep him ever-present in everything that I do.'"
Faith has always played a large role in Parton's life. The 10-time Grammy Award winner was raised in a devout Christian family in rural Tennessee, and her grandfather, the Rev. Jake Owens, was a Pentecostal preacher.
Parton has previously spoken out about how her faith has kept her grounded and influenced her music.
In 1971, Parton released her first gospel album titled "The Golden Streets of Glory," which featured songs including "Yes I See God," "I Believe" and "Lord Hold My Hand."
During a 2018 interview with Closer Weekly, Parton shared how her faith enabled her to persevere during difficult times.
In the early 1980s, Parton had gynecological problems that had plagued her for about three years. By 1984, she underwent a partial hysterectomy and was told she'd never be able to have children with Dean.
"It was a really bad time," Parton told the outlet. "Sometimes God just has to smack you down. He was almost saying, 'Sit your pretty little a-- down because we have to deal with some stuff.'"
Parton admitted she sank into a two-year depression and was forced to scale back her professional commitments to heal. Also around that same time, Parton struggled with feelings of guilt over an attraction she had to another man.
The singer was so shaken by those feelings that she began contemplating suicide.
"I looked at it a long time," said Parton about eyeing her gun at the time. "Then, just as I picked it up, just to hold it and look at it for a moment, our little dog, Popeye, came running up the stairs. The tap-tap of his paws jolted me back to reality. I suddenly froze and I put the gun down."
Parton said it was then that she started to pray, begging for God's help.
"I kind of believe Popeye was a spiritual messenger from God," she said. "I don't think I'd have done it, killed myself, but I can't say for sure. Now that I've gone through that terrible moment, I can certainly understand the possibilities, even for someone solid like me, if the pain gets bad enough."
Parton insisted that it was her faith in God that truly saved her marriage.
"A belief in God is essential," she said, adding she never lets a day pass by without her daily prayers.
Parton and Dean even built their own small chapel on the grounds of their farm in Tennessee.
"She spends time there the most every day she's home," a friend told Closer Weekly. "She not only prays there, but she often goes there to write spiritual songs. Carl goes as well, and it's their quiet place to reflect, pray and give thanks."
Parton's friend noted at the time that the two's love for each other had only grown stronger over the years.
"There's still a lot of passion between them," claimed the insider. "Dolly still enjoys cooking for Carl, and he still writes her love poems. Despite all of their ups and downs, they both consider their relationship a match made in heaven."
"She always lets God's hand guide her through life," another friend added. "And she's always come to the realization that God believes her place is with Carl."
"We know each other so well," Parton told the outlet. "I know every line in Carl's face, and he knows every hair in my wig!"
Parton first met Dean at a laundromat in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1964 when she was 18 and he was 21. The couple tied the knot two years later.
Despite being married to the internationally famous singer-songwriter for almost six decades, Dean was a very private man who steered clear of the spotlight, though he played a strong supporting role in Parton's life.
During his lifetime, Dean rarely gave interviews. However, in 2016, he spoke lovingly of Parton while the couple were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.
"My first thought was, 'I'm going to marry that girl,'" Dean told Entertainment Tonight about meeting Parton for the first time. "My second thought was, 'Lord, she's good-looking.' And that was the day my life began. I wouldn't trade the last 50 years for nothing on this Earth."
Parton announced Dean's death in a heartfelt statement that she shared on Instagram on March 3.
"Carl and I spent many wonderful years together," the "9 to 5" singer wrote. "Words can't do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy."
"This is a love note to family, friends, and fans," Parton shared. "Thank you for all the messages, cards, and flowers that you've sent to pay your respects for the loss of my beloved husband Carl."
"I can't reach out personally to each of you but just know it has meant the world to me. He is in God's arms now and I am okay with that. I will always love you."
On March 7, Parton revealed a new song that she wrote for Dean titled "If You Hadn't Been There."
"I fell in love with Carl Dean when I was 18 years old," she wrote along with a throwback photo of herself with her spouse. "We have spent 60 precious and meaningful years together. Like all great love stories, they never end. They live on in memory and song. He will always be the star of my life story, and I dedicate this song to him."
Two weeks after Dean's death, Parton opened up about how she was carrying on.
"I'm doing better than I thought I would," Parton told Knox News. "I've been with him 60 years. So I'm going to have to relearn some of the things that we've done. But I'll keep him always close."
"I'm at peace that he's at peace, but that don't keep me from missing him and loving him," the entertainer said, adding that her husband had "suffered a great deal."
"It's a hole in my heart, you know, but we'll fill that up with good stuff, and he'll still always be with me," she said.
While speaking with the Associated Press, Parton shared details about her upcoming projects.
"I have a new book coming out ... this one is called 'Star of the Show,' which is actually a song I wrote years ago," she said. "But it's about my life on the road and my life on stage – all the behind the scenes and all the people that I've met and all of the things that happen when you're traveling like that as I have for all of these years."
"So, that, and then I have my life story as a musical," Parton continued. "It's called 'Dolly: An Original Musical.' And I've written a lot of original songs for it. Of course, it'll have the big hits that are woven into the story. And it's just about my life from the time I was little until up through now."
"It's going to be at the Fisher Center of Performing Arts at Belmont University [in Nashville]. Then, once that has its run through the end of August, then we take it to New York to open on Broadway next year."
Parton also reflected on being known as a "global superstar."
"I always say, and it's the truth, that I am a workhorse that looks like a show horse. But I got to keep it all up, and I enjoy all of it," she explained.
"My husband always said, 'If anybody was ever born to be a star, it's you,'" Parton recalled, "because he sees me loving to do all the things and playing and stuff; it's play time for me, but I take it very serious."