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The Pandemic Documented in Photos
Powerful images of COVID-19 around the worldEach year the World Press Photo organization holds a contest to find the most powerful images. This year, as to be expected, the winners were photojournalists who documented the pandemic in photos. Mads Nissen took home the top prize with his photo titled “First Embrace.” The powerful photograph captures the first hug that Rosa Luzia…
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“The Father”
Anthony Hopkins portrays a man grappling with dementia in a devastating filmWhile Anthony Hopkins’ performance in “The Father” won the 83-year-old his second Oscar for best actor in April 2021, it’s not an easy one to watch. Written and directed by French novelist and playwright Florian Zeller, “The Father” explores one man’s spiral into dementia. Life is experienced from the point of view of Anthony, an…
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Chronic Pain’s Brave New World
The search for novel treatments for the conditions that plague 1.5 billion adults worldwideChronic pain can be a confusing and miserable condition for those who suffer from it and an ethical gray area for the doctors who treat it. A desire to move away from opiates and tap into a growing market for pain relief has researchers and pharmaceutical companies advancing pain medication in new directions.
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India’s Holy River Inundated with Bodies of COVID-19 Victims
Families of COVID-19 victims are casting the bodies into the Ganges instead of burning themAt the height of India’s battle with COVID-19 on May 9, 2021, there were more than 3,750,000 active cases. The daily death toll has been reported as 3,000, but many experts believe it is much higher. The people of India are struggling to deal with this many deaths in rapid succession.
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What Does It Mean to Die Well? (Interview)
Bioethicist Dr. Lydia Dugdale reflects on preparing ourselves for the end of lifeIn her book “The Lost Art of Dying,” bioethicist Dr. Lydia Dugdale explores the ways in which humans have prepared for death throughout history, and how we might apply that wisdom to the end-of-life experience today. Dugdale is a practicing internist as well as an associate professor of medicine at Columbia University, and she directs…
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“Wayfaring Stranger”
Norwegian bluegrass band turns the Johnny Cash classic into a haunting melodyWhile the Johnny Cash tune “Wayfaring Stranger” has been covered by everyone from Jack White to Emmylou Harris, few have been able to match the soulful, plaintive version created by the Hayde Bluegrass Orchestra. With Rebekka Nilsson’s powerful voice rising above a chorus of strings, the song’s opening lines take on an otherworldly quality. I’m…
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Our Monthly Tip: Use a Floral Metaphor to Express the Pain of Your Loss
A memorial service theme embellished with the flower “Love Lies Bleeding”Our Tip of the Month Love Lies Bleeding, which is a member of the amaranth floral family, is a striking plant that can offer a visual representation of your grief and overflowing love. This annual flower, which gained popularity in the Victorian age, is known for its drooping red blooms that give off a warm…
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“Pieces of a Woman”
The 2021 Netflix film is a searingly honest portrait of child loss“Pieces of a Woman” is a movie on Netflix about a young couple who lose a baby in childbirth, and the aftermath of their grief. While the title suggests a story that centers on Martha, the mother, the film is as much about her husband Sean and the very different paths they take to emerge…
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Living Kidney Donation Offers Hope for Transplants on Wait List
Nobel laureates’ scientific models can help match unrelated living donors with patients awaiting transplantOver 90,000 Americans sit on a waitlist for a kidney transplant, vastly outnumbering the amount of available deceased donors. But a growing network of living donors offers hope to those asking for a miracle.
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