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death Archives - Live Life Twice

The Final Word: Writing My Own Obituary

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‘Why?’ People ask me all the time. ‘Why would you want to write your own obituary? Isn’t it morbid, scary, depressing?’ No. It’s exactly the opposite.   David Bowie’s death earlier this week pushed the subject of mortality to the forefront of many peoples’ minds. We’re all going to die….

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Death Is Not A Dirty Word

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I hardly move though really I'm travelling a terrific distance. Stillness. One of the doors into the temple.− Mary Oliver Death is not a dirty word. Nor is it something we should fear, ignore or steep in mystery. I often see people at funerals or memorials struggle to speak freely...
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Transformation Dance Called Dying

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Are you looking for the Holy One? I am in the next seat. My shoulder is against yours.− Kabir We call it Passing Away, or Kicking the Bucket. Casting off this Mortal Coil. Biting the Dust. Meeting your Maker. Facing the Void. Going Home. Ram Dass, the Western spiritual teacher,...
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What is a ‘Good’ Death?

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What is a ‘good death’? Does it mean there’s no pain or emotional suffering? Or does it mean we’ve arrived at some acceptance of all that, and of the inevitable impermanence of life? I’ve often wondered how to make sense of death. How to make peace with it. How to…

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Denial of Death

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The temple bell stops But the sound keeps coming out of the flowers − Basho There is a denial of death in our culture. In our postmodern, affluent West, we don’t see people die, wash their bodies, dress them lovingly, and watch over them for a day and night in...
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Emotional Wills

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The world goes on as it must, the bees in the garden rumbling a little, the fish leaping, the gnats getting eaten. And so forth.− Mary Oliver We all think about drawing up a will as we get older or experience failing health. We know the value of putting our...
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