“Our family could have been a more supportive resource if individuals were able to balance their efforts to keep going with time to talk with each other about our struggles in the midst of grief.” –

–J Brown, Growing Yourself Up, Chapter 15 Old Age and facing Death : Denial or honest preparation.

In this pod cast I reflect on the lessons learned from death in my family of origin, applied to a more recent death in my family system. What does it take to contribute to a more open system of relationships during the painful, anxious time of preparing for a death? How much are we able to communicate our thoughts, feelings and imaginings to another and allow them to reciprocate? How does the dying person do this and how do other family members ask good open questions and share their own experiences?