How can we make sense of and reshape our narratives around loss when the loss is so formative? In this episode, I interview Christina Vo , a women's mentor and guide, about the experience of losing her mother at age 14, and how she's understood and incorporated her mother’s death into her narrative over time. Christina talks about: Her mother’s journey from Vietnam, and how her experience was reflected in her character and parenting style. Discovering more about her mom’s life after her death. H...
Jul 07, 2020•38 min•0Ep. 15
When we die, what choices do we consciously make? How might we be guided through this major transition? Wendy Rolón ’s background is in birth and end of life doula work, music, writing and fiber art. She is particularly awed by grief's ability to transform and expand our lives. A long-time supporter of those in transition, Wendy brings a calm and loving presence to any situation. In this episode, we cover a range of topics, from the Covid-19 pandemic, to her personal and early loss of her mother...
Jun 23, 2020•40 min•Season 1Ep. 15
How can we make sense of tragedy? In this episode, I interview April Rinne , a public speaker, advisor, writer, and globetrotter. She advises, speaks, writes, and advocates for businesses and policies fit for the 21st-century change (adopting what she calls a "flux mindset"). April discusses the experience of losing both of her parents in a car accident when she was 20, and how, out of that tragedy, she set out to make better sense of the world (including a world in flux), and eventually, help m...
Jun 02, 2020•35 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Grief is at an unprecedented level during Covid-19 and yet we are losing the normal in-person ways we grieve. How can we stay connected? Lennon Flowers is the co-founder of The Dinner Party, a platform for connecting mostly 20 and 30 somethings, as well as early 40 somethings, people who are often among the first in their peer community to experience a loss. In this episode, Lennon and I have a discussion about authentic conversations and creating spaces, virtual and in-person, that help people ...
May 26, 2020•36 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Grief is at an unprecedented level during Covid-19 and yet we are losing the normal in-person ways we grieve. What can we find from the spirit world to guide us during these times? And, what can we do to show our loved ones we care when they’re transitioning? Sand Symes is a Northern California-based modern medicine woman, shamanic practitioner, spiritual teacher, certified coach, former social worker, and intuitive healing guide. Sand and I talk about the concept of transition and how this fits...
May 19, 2020•25 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Grief is at an unprecedented level during Covid-19 and yet we are losing the normal in-person ways we grieve. How can we create connected ways to grieve? Siena Tenisci is a facilitator, or “grief tender,” of the Pacific Healing Circle’s online grief rituals. She brings her background in body-based somatic healing practices, group therapy, and ceremonial work to community grief tending. Siena and I talk about the ways the Grief Tenders are holding a sacred online space for grieving during these t...
May 12, 2020•37 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Grief is at an unprecedented level during Covid-19 and yet we are losing the normal, social ways we grieve. What are some tools we can use to process our grief? Charlotte Fox Weber and I talk about grief and bibliotherapy as an approach to processing grief during the age of Covid-19. Charlotte and I discuss: Her work with the School of Life and bibliotherapy The value of reading and re-reading during grief Our go-tos for authors and literature To learn more about the resources mentioned in this ...
May 05, 2020•27 min•0Ep. 10
What is the value of hearing stories from others? In this episode, I interview Dara Kosberg, Director of Programming for Reimagine, who discusses art and connecting as ways to process her grief, her views on her parents, and how she has chosen to live her life in the present. She talks about: Her changing views on her loss over the years How she processed grief through art and connection, and how this appears in her life today Losing a feeling of security when her mom passed away To learn more a...
Apr 28, 2020•32 min•Season 1Ep. 9
How should we respond to grief? In this episode, I interview Ken Breniman, a licensed yoga psychotherapist specializing in providing trauma-informed, bereavement-sensitive, thanatologically-inspired yoga therapy to individuals and groups in the Bay Area. Ken discusses his views on his mother’s journey, his experience of prolonged grief and connectedness, as well as his views on mortality. He talks about: His prolonged grief experience in his 20s The legacy his mom left and how that relates to hi...
Apr 14, 2020•38 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Is there anything that can teach us about loss? Sara Karbeling, as part of a close family, discusses how her father’s death helped her family understand death, how she learned that death is a part of life, and how she chooses to maintain his spirit today. Sara talks about: The sudden loss of her father How her father’s loss taught her to help others deal with loss Keeping her dad’s memory alive through traditions To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes ....
Mar 31, 2020•31 min•Season 1Ep. 7
This is a bonus episode, and it deviates from the format of what I’ve been producing so far. I have been operating mostly on pause due to travel to France and Spain, as well as dealing with the general fatigue of jet lag and self-quarantine after. I recently heard about a close friend passing away from cancer. She is the daughter of Anne Marie, whose interview I published in February. In this episode, I talk about: My best friend from high school, Melissa. Our friendship and its lasting meaning ...
Mar 17, 2020•9 min•Season 1Ep. 6
When someone passes, how do we honor their legacy? Through doing or by being? In this episode, I interview Dr. Haakon Faste, a design educator and innovation consultant. Dr. Faste discusses growing up with a father who encouraged him to be a maker and designer, as well as how that has shaped his outlook today as an educator. Dr. Faste talks about: His father’s perspective on education, design, and other interests. The experience of being with his dad during one of the last weeks of his life. The...
Mar 03, 2020•43 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Does being adopted change our relationship to our parents? In this episode, I interview Anne Marie, a social worker, about the experience of losing her mother and father, and how being adopted fits into her experience. Anne Marie is my best friend’s mother. Her daughter is currently facing a scary battle with cancer, and she faces grief again. To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes . Connect with us on social media: Facebook Instagram This is a public e...
Feb 18, 2020•40 min•Season 1Ep. 4
In our lives, what are the defining moments? How about who is in our life, our family or our friends? In this episode, I interview Benjamin Gunning, a leader at a global design firm who is also a nationally recognized philanthropic advisor, and Treasurer of the Board of Trustees at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California. Benjamin discusses what it was like to lose his parents, undergo a long period of grief before loss, and grow closer to his family through it. To learn more abou...
Jan 21, 2020•34 min•Season -1Ep. 2
"Death is not a separation, especially energetic-wise." How do we stay connected after losing our loved ones? Ebony Carter, a yoga therapist and Assistant Director at the Healing WELL, talks about how she stays connected to her father, as well as the experience of losing her father, her father’s trauma, and how her grief has appeared in her life. Ebony talks about: - Her traumatic loss as well as her views on her father’s past trauma after becoming a yoga therapist - Parenting while knowing that...
Jan 07, 2020•35 min•0Ep. 1
My goal for this podcast is to share stories about parent loss and grief, so that we, as a community of peers, can move through life with our grief. I know you’ll find that these stories are as much about life as they are about death. And, I hope you’re able to find a way to live with your grief by knowing you aren’t alone in your journey. Sarah Davis is a learning experience designer in the Bay Area who focuses on empathy and storytelling in learning design. She lost her father to cancer in 201...
Dec 06, 2019•7 min0
