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Birthing Death
http://www.ndbroadcasting.org/program.php?id=3137
Program Description:
"It's strange to think that we care for somebody all our lives, and then as soon as their heart stops or they stop breathing we send their body away immediately. It's very disruptive. It leaves the space empty, people feeling helpless; their confidence to take care of this person has been undermined by giving this ritual away to other people." With this observation Jerrigrace Lyons defines the foundation for a shift in the way we handle death. She and Leslene della Madre are midwives, not to birth but to the passage out of this life. Culturally we have learned to look the other way at the time of death, until we find ourselves afraid of the process and of handling the body that remains. But in recent years, more and more people are returning to ancient practices of caring for the body of a deceased loved one at home, rather than relinquishing it to the care of a funeral home. After years of supporting families through this process, Ms. Lyons and Ms. della Madre have gained deep
insight and wisdom about what
Jerrigrace Lyons is a Reiki Master, a Trager practitioner, and the founder of Final Passages, a nonprofit organization that seeks to educate people about funeral and burial options. She conducts a home funeral ministry, and is the author of Final Passages: Preplanning for a Home or Family-Directed Funeral (Final Passages 1999). Leslene della Madre is the founder of Winged Women Return, a center for shamanic healing, and the author of Midwifing Death: Returning to the Arms of the Ancient Mother (Plain View Press 2003).
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