Last week, at one of our workshops, we were asked to take a minute to think about and write down our epitaph. We were told that we could include the year we wanted to die (why not?) and were reminded to keep our text brief as only so many [...]
When hospice nurses were asked, what hospice is to them, they wrote the following: - Hospice is Being There - Hospice is Wishes Respected - Hospice is Having a choice to be home - Hospice is Telling the truth, even when it's hard - Hospice is a gift [...]
If you’re like me you’ve heard many of the older people in your family say things like, “Don’t fuss over me when I die,” or, “When I’m dead just throw me in a ditch.” We accept their statements as expressions of not wanting to burden their family with the [...]
This is Part III of my story, to read Part I, or Part II, click here. { my husband Lou was diagnosed with cancer and given months to live. this is what happened to both of us as his life drew to an end. the people that touched [...]
If you knew the exact day that you were going to die, how would you deal with that information? Mark TwainPhoto Courtesy of http://cherrybam.tumblr.com/post/50626391123 I think about dying everyday, it is one of the blessings and curses of my chosen profession. Being a funeral director has added [...]
I recently attended a service where the officiant said, “funerals aren’t for the person who died, they are for the living.” I initially disliked this idea, feeling that it sounded vastly self-serving at a time that was set-aside for someone who had died. This same officiant then proceeded [...]
Explaining death & dying to small children. I used to feel like the word “dead” hung awkwardly in the air whenever I said it in the presence of my daughter, Zoey. In time, I realized there was no getting around this word or its meaning and I shouldn’t be [...]
Thanksgiving: Rejection Sparks Reflection Normally a time filled with the noise and laughter of a house filled with family and friends. A time of me bustling in a kitchen with rich spicy smells from all the preparations. But maybe not this particular year I am recalling . . [...]
Journey Mercies . . . Leaving Home The thought of leaving home wasn’t something I wanted to think about, nor was it something I figured I would ever have to do. I was 60 years old and had lived in the same house for 28 years. It was my [...]
When There May Not be Tomorrow: 3 Reasons to Ask the Tough Questions At the age of forty-four, I am in the unique position of still having a living grandparent. My father's mother is nearly ninety-eight years old and aside from the expected decline of her memory, she is [...]
