I’ve attached a great article from the Canadian newspaper, Edmonton Journal, which shows the growing acceptance of shrouds with no coffin burials, even among traditionalists. It says the Anglican church in Alberta is recognising the environmental concerns of its congregation, something that is catching on everywhere. My cover photo, which … Read more
In a few minutes an episode of ABC’s Australian Story about a friend who is very dear to me will go to air. The story – The Good Fight – is about Jill Emberson an ABC radio personality from Newcastle. Jill is an old school friend of mine who was … Read more
Here is a wonderful example of how we can bring our talents and who we are right up to the experience of the death of someone we love. Being with the people we love as they die and actively participating in how we say goodbye to them makes death easier … Read more
That’s a full stop – a red stop sign with angled corners and a white line around it. Resting here, my knees have buckled, in front of that sign you planted in my path. I have walked this space so confidently, happy to share what I know, to muck in. … Read more
This morning Play School did something very special. It had an episode about new life and end of life. Emma, one of the presenters explained to an earlier television news audience that the team sought the guidance of experts on managing grief in children. Children deal with death in a … Read more
Sadly, until recently children were often excluded from funerals, something we recognise today as harmful. Christine was only seven when her father died and she will never forget it. But one emotion that loomed large for a long time after was anger – not because Fred had died but because … Read more
Singapore broadcaster Jason Dasey and author Neil Humphreys have something in common that’s not all that unusual. As Jason explained when opening our interview on Singapore’s Money FM program on Saturday: “Both of us (Jason and Neil) have been affected by sudden death in our own families.” The week before … Read more
Today a Mexican Cross to remember Chris by, because later this morning, Sydney time, his family who are dear to my heart will bury him. They are a large Catholic family just like the one I grew up in and now he, one of the six siblings, is gone. If … Read more
Today, like most of the world, I’m thinking about Christchurch in New Zealand where 49 people died because of an act of horrible violence. It’s a beautiful city and I’m determined to hold on to recent memories of all that is good about it: great people, wonderful walks, innovative architecture … Read more
When I started interviewing people about their experiences of death, my selection process was a fairly random one. That was deliberate because I wanted the conversations to reflect life around me as it is in my country, in my time, in my culture – no pretence, no artifice, no filter. … Read more
How do you do what Australia’s ABC radio announcer Jill Emberson is doing and live knowing you will die? No, no, no – I don’t mean how do you live with that terrible truth in the background, that we all have to face. I mean how do you live knowing … Read more
It’s been quiet around here for a little while because I’ve been working on an exciting project with Murdoch Books. Murdoch Books will be publishing my life affirming book about death in 2019. We agree that dying well is part of the brand’s mission to help people ‘live life well’. … Read more
Could an end of life doula, or amicus mortis help to midwife your death? ‘Doula’ is a Greek word for a woman who gives support, help, and advice to another woman during pregnancy and during and after birth. The word has now spread to cover the same style of care for someone who is dying.
Other expressions which cover support at the end of life are “midwife to the dying” and the Latin term “amicus mortis”, the friend of the dying.
Pauline looked as though she was just doing the ordinary things: just getting on with it because, as she said, you’ve got no choice. But she was being absolutely extraordinary.
Spiritual experiences around the time of death can be very powerful. Sometimes these alert others that someone they love has died. My friend Carolyn Parfitt shares a story that is a good example of this. “My husband and I were away camping in Kakadu National Park and we were out … Read more
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