Death & Dying

Details: Written by: Deborah Morris Coryell

Could any of us watching Peter Pan struggling with his shadow -- to find his shadow, to keep his shadow and, ultimately, to "bind" his shadow to him -- have known that the shadow carries powerful psychological implications? We might have noticed that Peter seemed different once his shadow was firmly attached. He was still delightful and charming but slightly subdued and not quite so self-centered and irresponsible. A bit more... dare we say, grown up? As Peter Pan could tell us, the shadow is...

Details: Written by: Sandy Goodman

We have not done well with dying. We have denied its reality and considered it an end to life that should be avoided at all costs. We tell our children that Grandma died and went to a beautiful place called Heaven, and then we quit saying her name. Instead of seeing death as the next stage of life and exploring the possibilities of such a belief, we choose to let fear keep us ignorant.

Details: Written by: Robert Jennings, InnerSelf.com

So What's Really Going On?

"The times they are a changing", so wrote Bob Dylan in the early '60s. The title had its meaning to the young people of the period, but it has always had a universal meaning. The times have always changed and will continue to do so.

Details: Written by: Susan Fawcett

"Looks like this tree could use some water." I looked over at my neighbor, standing 30 feet away, beside the cypress tree my former boyfriend, Denver, had planted the previous spring. His words echoed and rolled slowly across the lawn that divided us. My hands tingled, and I clasped them together to keep them from shaking...

Details: Written by: Prema Baba Swamiji (Dr. Donald Schnell)

"Is she going to make it?" I asked, throwing my arms around my grandfather's stooped shoulders, enfolding him in a tight embrace. My grandmother was dying of cancer. What does one ask in such a dismal situation? Oma and I had often talked about spiritual ideas. She firmly believed we all have souls...

Details: Written by: Susan Connors

A testimonial of undying love and the presence of life after death... Curiously, my study of metaphysics did not really begin in earnest until the day of my Grandmother's death, when I became convinced that life did, in fact, continue after "death".

Details: Written by: Kim Hartman

At the time, I was totally unprepared for the dramatic and extraordinary events that would unfold over the next 21 days. I would see and learn of a few more of the mysteries of the universe. I would get a glimpse of the phenomenal wonders and magic of life, physical death, life after death, and the transition that takes place during this period.

Details: Written by: Dorothy Crump

One day, I asked my dad if he would be there when God called me home, and he promised he would. He told me he would be watching over me. One evening, many years later, Mom called and said that Dad had just died. It was the first time I had lost anyone close to me. I was devastated! I don't believe anyone is ever prepared for...

Details: Written by: Tom Paugh

After living sixty or sixty-five years people tend to move around a lot. Many buy and use house trailers and motor homes, enduring cramped conditions to seek new horizons. Still others devise various forms of travel to see the world or the country 'while still young enough to enjoy it.' Many, if not most, hike, walk, swim, jog, cycle, climb, swing golf clubs or tennis racquets or fly rods. The shared desire seems to be to achieve a state of almost perpetual motion. Action symbolizes life. Death is such a very long stillness. There seems to be a grim universal blind hope that it will be harder for the death dart to hit a moving target.

Details: Written by: Margaret Coberly

Acceptance of Death: Develop a Lasting Sense of Peace

by Margaret Coberly. One important and obvious realization that can come to light when thinking about death is that death is inevitable. Through the process of further reflection, a greater awareness of death occurs and eventually a calm presence in the face of death can be developed.

Details: Written by: David Wendell Moller

Fear and Denial of Death: Is it Fear of Dying or Fear of Death? Modern society spends considerable effort on disinfecting the experience of dying. This inclination to hide and exclude death from everyday social activity is supported by the transfer of the place of death from home to the hospital.

Details: Written by: B.J Wall

A Visit to the Other Side: A Reminder of How Perfect We All Are I didn't ever remember hearing about Universal Laws, yet, strangely I understood what they were saying even as it came out of their mouths. These were the guides for the universe created especially for us and I had to know more. I knew this was the truth as I had never experienced it.