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DEATHWORK
Death Doula. Death Midwife. Soul Midwife. Death Worker. What does this all mean? It can mean many things. As many of you know, I embarked on a different way to be of service to others, and that is guiding the death or dying process. There’s all kinds of death workers. Some will guide you through the legal paperwork, others will help folk during the dying process for the person dying and supporting their loved ones. There are folk who will help with greening your death, home funerals, doing rituals, and/or memorials. Life & Death work encompasses many roles. It’s been a wonderful journey becoming a death worker! I feel that embarking on this journey of embracing death, reclaiming ritual/traditions, and honoring our legacies and sometimes the skeletons/lessons learned,(which lead to my Roses & Monsters project,) is related to the shift in culture that needs to happen in the world. About two centuries ago, we as a world started to industrialize and distance ourselves with each other and our relationship to death. I (and many others) feel this helped lead us to where we are today, estranged from one another. We live in a society where we are in so much fear of missing out, that we become attached to our phones/social media, we take every step to avoid emotionally processing life, and also disengage in the dying process. We have become the passing through culture. Many folk are no longer practicing cultural rituals or family traditions, not only for dying, but also for living. Where is the honoring of our legacies? Why is it that only “celebrities” are lifted, when we all have gifts that we bless the world with? Oral storytelling is decreasing at such a rapid rate, and we are not making time to share about our family, neighborhood, and community histories. What have our families learned from our endeavors and grievances? Reimagining our relationship with our loved ones who pass, how do we keep them alive in our hearts? I’m excited to be writing more about this and to be of service to my loved ones and their loved ones.
I’m happy to introduce one of the new paths in life, that formed 5 years ago when I created Circular Crossings. I’m pretty transparent that I’m still on my learning journey, but I’m fortunate to have mentors that can be of service when I may not be able to, along with a network of folk who handle aspects of death work that I don’t work in. Part of my journey entailed going through a program with Beyond Yonder in Canada, where I was blessed to meet an amazing group of open and loving women who share my passion in death work. It was so wonderful to feel lifted and held by program director and Beyond Yonder founder Cassandra, who's a wonderful death doula and mentor, along with all the wonderful circle teachers/death workers who blessed us with their knowledge. I’ve included some useful links to start dialogues in your own spaces under the resource tab. One of my favorites to this day is the Death Over Dinner site! This is where my journey to become a life/death worker started. I included some death blogs and other related work, as well. My hope is to one day utilize what I have learned throughout the years, to create a space to celebrate and honor life and death. This space will allow the community to learn, heal, grieve, and love, with not only human interaction, but also animal and plant love too! #deathbecomesher Wish me luck!
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