‘I miss him so much’ - Dolly Parton on grief and moving forward after her husband’s death

It's been a difficult 12 months for Dolly Parton after losing her husband Carl Dean in March last year, before suffering health complications herself a few months afterwards. Carl Thomas Dean was 82-years-old when he passed away, and the couple were approaching their 60th wedding anniversary. They'd married when Dolly was aged just 20 and Carl was 23.

Having now just celebrated turning 80, the country music legend has spoken out about her ongoing grief after losing Carl, and how she manages to move forward with her life while missing her husband's presence.

In conversation with Hello! magazine, Dolly was asked how she was feeling nearly a year on from her husband's death. "I feel emotional," she replied, adding, "People have been very kind and supportive, but it's all very emotional for me."

The star continued, "I was just 18-years-old when we met, and we were together for 60 years. That's such a long time, so it's hard to adjust. I miss him so much."

The singer has not spoken about her husband's cause of death, only suggesting he had been ill for sometime. She's also suggested that knowing he would pass away didn't prepare her for the loneliness of the experience.

When it comes to moving forward, Dolly has one very key strategy. She explained, "I'm keeping busy, I'm working every day. That has been the best thing for me."

Dolly added that she's always had a huge amount of energy, and this helps her with keeping busy and her plans to keep going well into retirement age. She declared, "I've always had that energy, I guess it comes from wanting to accomplish everything I wanted to do, and still wanting to do more."

Dolly continued, "Nobody knows how much time we have on this earth, so I'm just trying to do everything while I can. What I want to do most is be a good person and make people feel happy and uplifted, if I can. As long as I have the creative and spiritual energy, I'll keep going. There's no retiring."

Alongside maintaining her strong work ethic, the singer's faith helps her with grief. She told Associated Press that she believes she will one day be reunited with her husband.

"I am a person of faith, and I truly believe that I’m going to see him again someday," she says, adding, "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."

"You just kind of have to learn to kind of make new plans - but that’s the hardest part," she candidly shared.

Dolly maintains an inspiring ambition to always be the best version of herself and put love out into the world. She also wants to continue making her late husband proud.

"All I know is that I'm going to keep working, and keep dreaming," she said, revealing one of her life secrets to be, "Live, love and do the best you can to make the world a better place."

The star said, poignantly, "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."

"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," Dolly stated.