The movie, Cherry Blossoms is about life, death, love and the journey of spirit. It is also about Butoh. I now understand Butoh. Life, death, love, grief and Butoh — all the same. My dearly departed friend, Marianne, danced Butoh. Another friend, Sika, has just taken it up. I never understood the attraction. It seems […]
Back when I was in graduate school in Indiana, I traveled to Cleveland to attend a weekend Gestalt Therapy group as part of my dissertation research. What I remember most about that event was feeling awed by a young woman who spoke of ten years of experience — of what I can’t recall. At the […]
I can’t believe it’s almost Thanksgiving! The impending holiday has me thinking about the way we experience time — speeding up sometimes, slowing down at other times. For example, it drag when I am standing on line for a movie, especially when it’s cold, but it flies by when I’m stuck in traffic and trying […]
I have never been all that keen about material stuff. I love clear white walls, oriental rugs on wood floors and a few throw pillows. Space to quiet the mind or do a headstand. I dislike clothes shopping and go into overwhelm at garage sales, flea markets and large box stores. My thoughts are, “Oh […]
Doing a life review is one of the items on the list of actions for dying well. It seems reasonable that you would want to take stock of things as the end nears. Create a personal “life report card.” How did I do over all? What makes me proud? What did I learn? Do I […]
About four years ago, I had the humbling experience of forgetting a dinner/concert engagement with a friend. I knew it was coming up, but for some reason thought it the following week. I had always been pretty good at remembering things, so I was quite shocked when my friend called around 6 pm to ask […]
I can’t recall a time in my life when I did not believe in some kind of afterlife. Certainly my visualization of what that life after death might entail has changed over the years, but the certainty of my continuation has never wavered. Although raised a Catholic with all its flowery imagery of heaven, I […]
In her book, Worldshift Happens!, Carolyn North makes an argument for a shift in our dominant worldview from a predominantly objective, reductive, narrow-focused, scientific perspective to a broader, more inclusive, all parts are interrelated and holistic one. These two world views seem very much to be the difference between left brain and right brain function. […]
The first time I heard about communications from the dead was shortly after my mother had died in 1998. I was very unsettled by her loss and talking to everyone about death. A friend of mine told me the story about her own mother’s death. Liz (not her real name) and her sister Kate (pseudonym) […]
Recently, my in-laws came to visit. Both parents are in their mid-eighties. My mother-in-law has just been diagnosed with breast cancer. It has been on my mind for a while now to get them to discuss their end-of-life plans. This latest news made it seem all the more imperative. AARP Magazine just had a story […]
