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“Last Things: A Graphic Memoir of Loss and Love”
A powerful graphic novel captures one family’s experience with the effects of a horrifying illnessMarissa Moss, an award-winning author and illustrator, is best known for her children’s series, “Amelia’s Notebook.” With “Last Things,” Moss uses her storytelling and illustration skills to tell her own story of loss and love. Her husband, Harvey, was diagnosed with bulbar ALS, a particularly aggressive form of the fatal disease also known as Lou…
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Is Death Really “The Great Equalizer?” African American Deathways and Inequality in America (Interview)
An interview with death scholar and Professor of African American History Dr. Kami FletcherDr. Kami Fletcher is a death scholar and professor of U.S. and African American history at Albright College. Her work focuses on African American deathways and deathwork, examining African American norms and ideas surrounding death as well as ways that death intersects with race, class, gender, religion, and region. Back in 2010, when Dr. Fletcher…
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Some States Prepare To Loosen Shelter-In-Place Orders Amidst Uncertainty
It may feel like the country is about to get back to “normal,” but it will not be business as usualFor almost two months, the vast majority of the United States has been under some kind of stay-at-home order to prevent the spread of COVID-19. More than 68,000 Americans have died, and while numbers have appeared to stabilize in some regions, experts warn the pandemic is far from over. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the…
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“Danny Boy”
Despite its murky history, the quintessential Irish lament is a beloved funeral songOh Danny Boy,The pipes, the pipes are callingFrom glen to glen, and down the mountain side.The summer’s gone, and all the roses falling,It’s you, it’s you must go and I must bide. So begins the infamous Irish ballad “Danny Boy,” a song that has long been a staple at Irish Catholic funerals, wakes and memorial…
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Air Pollution Tied to Higher COVID-19 Death Rates
Studies link long-term exposure to more deaths from the novel coronavirusStudies from around the globe are linking air pollution to a greater likelihood of death from COVID-19. Researchers at Harvard University found that U.S. counties with more air pollution have experienced significantly higher death rates. An analysis published in the journal “Environmental Pollution” found that two heavily polluted regions of northern Italy experienced a death…
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The New Immortality: Shifting Attitudes About Death, Our Bodies and the Environment
People are conserving resources by repurposing their bodies after deathHumans are an innovative species. When presented with a problem, we adapt. For example, when the sheer numbers of dead bodies during the Civil War overwhelmed the living, humans invented embalming, and the funeral industry was born. A century and a half later, humans were presented with another problem. The traditional funeral and burial service,…
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I Had to See My Mother Dead at the Crematorium and No, It Wasn’t Macabre
Seeing her — and, later, her bones in the retort — was one of the most meaningful experiences of my lifeThis is Suzette’s story as told by Jeanette Summers. Our “Opening Our Hearts” stories are based on people’s real-life experiences. By sharing these experiences publicly, we hope to help our readers feel less alone in their grief and ultimately aid them in their healing process. In this story, Suzette talks about the experience of losing…
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“Council of Dads”
A book showing how, in difficult times, we turn to family—both born and chosenBruce Feiler was a successful author at the height of his career when doctors discovered a malignant tumor in his leg. The 44-year-old father of two was given three devastating possibilities: “The lost year, the lost leg, or the lost life.” As Feiler faced this new reality, one concern rose above the others: his young…
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Our Monthly Tip: Make a Biodegradable Ice Urn
Release your loved one’s ashes in a unique and eco-friendly fashionOur Tip of the Month DIY ice urns offer a unique and eco-friendly twist on a time-honored tradition: scattering ashes in a body of water. With the ashes frozen inside, the urn floats peacefully across the surface of the water, and the ashes are gradually released as the urn melts. This prevents the ashes from…
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