Let Me Die—Knowing When it’s Time to Go and Let Go
I had just started my shift at the hospital when I was paged to the intensive care unit. As I stepped out of the elevator...
Finding Nell; Living and Loving a Spouse with Alzheimer’s
When my wife was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2013, almost everything I read painted a bleak picture of our life together...
Advance Care Planning Leads to Better Peace of Mind
I’ve heard much talk about silver linings in this dark cloud we call the COVID-19 pandemic. Traffic is lighter, for instance,...
How to Eulogize Your Loved One
You’ve been tasked with eulogizing your loved one, and you have minimal time to prepare. In my work as a funeral celebrant,...
Over the Hump
Banjo and Tango are head-turners. When people drive by our farm, they slow down, loop around the block, pause in the driveway,...
7 Things I’ve Learned About Life from Death Care
“And did you get what you wanted from this life, even so? I did. And what did you want? To call myself beloved,...
Pay Attention: The art of living after diagnosis
Granddaddy taught me how to drive when I was only 12 years old. With a belly full of butterflies, I’d slide into the driver’s...
Big Fat Greek Funeral
The world I lived in had a soft voice and no claws. —Lisel Mueller I tended to 74-year-old Darian Christopolous’...
Human Composting Is a Greener Way to Go
Human composting helps people live their values even in death Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. That old prayer has new meaning...
What I Get Paid to Do
I work as a celebrant for one of the oldest funeral homes in Seattle. I remove bodies. I do cremations. I assist and participate...
