Ep. 165 Going Nowhere and Why It Matters

This episode is a post-illness reflection on what happens when all our plans and aspirations get waylaid and we end up getting nowhere that we had planned to be. It includes:How my end of year plans got upendedA metaphor of going NOWHERE on a forlorn highwayWhy nowhere is exactly the right place to be (Now Here in fact)How inspiration arises when the ego runs out of certaintyWhy this matters during the holiday seasonLearn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here

In this episode I discuss "immortality projects" - a term coined by Ernest Becker to describe the ego's efforts to escape the fear of death. This episode includes:What type of "projects" the ego creates to hide from deathThe cost of denying deathWhy denying death makes us vulnerable to cults, conspiracy theories, and manipulationWhy we need to awaken to our Higher Selves, our witnessing and observing selves, and help the ego surrender to our own higher wisdomWhy even "death work" can be an immortality project for the egoLearn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here

Today I'm sharing Thich Nhat Hahn's 4 elements of true love, which is a Buddhist perspective on love that I find valuable. This episode includes:Loving-kindness: May you be truly wellCompassion: Your pain is not separate from mineJoy: Your joy is my joyEquanimity/Freedom: Love that doesn't possess or controlLearn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here

In this episode I talk about the timing of delivering bad news and the experience of carrying that bad news until the moment it can be shared. This episode includes:The weight of carrying bad newsThe divine timing that sometimes asks us to waitWhy pausing is a survival skill in our current hurry-up societyHow synchronicity can occur when we slow down and allow for pausesThe value of saying Not Just YetLearn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here

In this episode I'll share insights from my recent Substack post on the metaphor of the butterfly life cycle and why as a society we are in a "chrysalis phase" right now. This episode includes:The need for grief rituals - both individual and collective - as we navigate this time of dissolutionWhy forgiveness is an essential part of grief workWhy each of us must find our own unique form of creativity to bring to the worldHow to protect what is new and fragileRecognizing other "imaginal cells" in order to collaborateLearn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here

This episode is Part 2 on the mini-series on dealing with the fear of death. Today we look again at the 5 doorways of exploring death and I share verses from The Tao of Death that can help us contemplate the deeper meaning of each doorway. The episode includes:Why we need to go within to learn about our fear of deathHow to "die before we die" by releasing ego attachmentsWhy we must learn to live in the present moment rather than the imagined futureConnecting to something larger than ourselvesSpeaking and connecting to others about our fears of deathLearn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here

In this episode I share some thoughts from ChatGPT along with my own about how to deal with our innate fear of death. Next week I'll continue with this topic and share some wisdom from The Tao of Death but first we begin with a deep dive into death. This episode incudes:What if we dive beneath the fear of death instead of trying to rise above itLook beneath the fearLearn to die before you diePractice presenceConnect to something largerSpeak the fear aloudLearn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here

In this episode I share how to use the Disney film Frozen 2--which I've been watching on repeat with my 3 year old granddaughter--as a catalyst for conversations about loss and grief. Here are some tips for using the film and a discussion guide you can download for your own family movie night. This episode include:Frozen 2's backstory of griefElsa's Hero's Journey in the film and what we learn from itAnna's journey through overwhelming grief and how to talk about itTeaching moments for familiesHow to talk with children after the movieGet the discussion guide hereLearn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here

In this episode I share how my own grieving process was helped by experiencing the visible evidence of mourning I encountered when traveling through Italy (as written in Wild and Holy). This episode includes:How grief is visible in Italy but repressed and hidden here in the USThe cost of repressed grief to our emotions and physical bodyHow shared grief can be healingThe connectedness we can experience through grief is needed in our society to heal our divisionsHow to make our own grief more visibleHow to help others share their grief more comfortablyPlease check out the Kickstarter campaign for my new book Wild and Holy!!Learn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here

In today's brief episode I share some thoughts about how my travels through Italy revealed to me that grief is a powerful source of creativity if we face it directly. This episode highlights the poetry of Andrea Gibson, whose journey through cancer sparked luminous creativity in the midst of grief. This episode includes:How grief breaks us open to allow creativity to emergeGrief becomes fertile ground for creative ideas to flourishHow grief can become a medicine, as described in Andrea Gibson's poetryGrief as a transformational fire that burns away what doesn't matterHow grief ultimately connects us will all humanity and creativity can create a ripple effect of hope and innovationPlease check out the Kickstarter campaign for my new book Wild and Holy!!Learn about my books hereCheck out End-of-Life University PodcastRead my latest Substack postMake a donation here