WELCOME TO OUR BLOG
Welcome to the SevenPonds.com blog – a community-driven extension of SevenPonds.com! I hope you find comfort and community in the resources and stories featured here. I’m always happy to hear from readers and can be reached at suzette@sevenponds.com.
FEATURED
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Buddhism and the Eastern Middle Ground: In Buddhist tradition, our death falls into a plane of existence that continues even after our final breath -
10 Facts About Hospice Care You May Not Know" />
10 Facts About Hospice Care You May Not Know: NHPCO stresses that hospice is about living fully, not preparing for death. -
Man of Many Faces" />
Man of Many Faces: A niece says goodbye to her favorite gay uncle, in whom she confided about her own sexuality
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Monthly Archives: February 2012
Actors Share Personal Caregiving Stories
"Your Turn to Care" Docu-series explores the critical issues around caregiving for aging loved ones.
KCET, the nation’s largest independent public television station serving Southern and Central California, announced a new original documentary series on caregiving hosted by Holly Robinson Peete called Your Turn to Care, airing on March 7 at 8 p.m. and March 14 … Continue reading
A Different Take on Death
Anna Barbauld's poem questions life, not death
“Life,” by Anna Barbauld, is a unique poem; rather than question what death is, and wonder what happens to us after we die, Barbauld ponders what exactly life is. In her view, life is the active force, not death. Life … Continue reading
What to Cook for Those Who Have Cancer or Are Terminally Ill
A cookbook about cancer-fighting foods and the importance of the “yum” factor
Recently we interviewed Rebecca Katz, an educator and cookbook author who reaches out to the public about nutrition and cancer-fighting foods. Her cookbook, One Bite at a Time: Nourishing Recipes for People with Cancer, Survivors, and their Caregivers, is the … Continue reading
Ghana’s Fantasy Coffins
Wildly-designed Coffins Personalize Funeral Services in Ghana
A tribe called the Ga in the African country of Ghana is making a splash with its “fantasy coffin” designs. The coffins come in creative designs like fish and Coke bottles and cell phones, allowing families to bury their loved … Continue reading
An Interview with Carole Brody Fleet
The author and grief recovery expert sheds light on widowhood and how to heal
Carole Brody Fleet is the founder and CEO of Widows Wear Stilettos, Inc. as well as the author of Widows Wear Stilettos: A Practical and Emotional Guide for the Young Widow and the upcoming Happily EVEN After: A Guide to … Continue reading
Posted in Professional Advice
Tagged Carole Brody Fleet, Death, Dying, Grief, Happily Even After, Widowhood, Widows Wear Stilettos
2 Comments
Fighting Cancer, One Joke at a Time
Jokes 4 Miles is Trying to Get 5,000 Jokes from Folks Around the World
Below is a reel from the Jokes 4 Miles campaign, which is soliciting jokes to help 19-year-old Miles Austrevich laugh his way through cancer treatment. If you’d like to submit a joke, you can do it through the Jokes 4 … Continue reading
Posted in Laughter is Medicine
Tagged Cancer, Humor, Jokes, Jokes 4 Miles, Laughter, Video
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Play Review: “Ghost Light”
Looking at the aftermath of George Moscone's death through the eyes of his child
“Ghost Light,” which just finished its month-long stint at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre, explores the murders of Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone by delving into the tremulous relationship between Moscone and his son, Jonathan Moscone. Written by Tony Taccone, … Continue reading
Jokes From Around the World Help Teen Fight Cancer
Jokes 4 Miles Helps 19-year-old Laugh His Way Through His Treatment
Miles Austrevich has been fighting brain cancer on and off since 2008. While he’s in the hospital, his father, comedian Len Austrevich, has asked his son’s schoolmates, doctors, comedians, celebrities, and strangers to send jokes to help Miles laugh his … Continue reading
Posted in Something Special
Tagged Cancer, Comedian, Humor, Joke, Len Austrevich, Miles Austrevich, Treatment
1 Comment
“Glad Did I Live and Gladly Die”
Robert Louis Stevenson drives a crucial point home
I’ve been thinking a lot about boldness lately, about saying what you want to say when you want to say it. This concept of simply stating what you mean is certainly at work in “Requiem,” by Robert Louis Stevenson, one … Continue reading
Posted in The Next Chapter
Tagged Accepting Death, Literature, Poetry, Requiem, Robert Louis Stevenson
1 Comment
Parastou Forouhar Heals through Subversive Artwork
See How the Iranian Artist Channels Her Grief After the Tragic Loss of her Parents
Following the brutal 1998 murder of her parents, Iranian intellectuals and activists Darius and Parvaneh Forouhar, Berlin-based artist Parastou Forouhar began her journey through grief with powerful subversive artwork. With her parents’ democratic fervor, Forouhar’s art explores issues from democracy to … Continue reading
What are some End-of-Life issues? An Interview with Jennifer Marsh
Opening up about hospice and the crisis of health care funding in America
Jennifer Marsh, LMFT, MS is Community Education & Outreach Coordinator at the Elizabeth Hospice, a private nonprofit in Escondido, CA. The Elizabeth Hospice provides hospice care and counseling to terminally ill individuals and their families, whether or not they can … Continue reading
Book Review: “All for Now,” by Joseph Di Prisco
A Novel About Life After Death, More or Less
Brother Stephen dies suddenly. That’s when matters get more complicated. During a meeting of school administrators, Brother Stephen, the main character of Joseph di Prisco’s novel, All for Now, monk at a Catholic Seminary and a teacher in the attached high … Continue reading
Funeral Rites in the Buddhist Tradition
Exploring the ways Buddhists embrace death
Buddhists take a positive stance when it comes to death: the best way to approach it is without fear. On Buddhanet, you can find an abundance of information focusing on the beliefs about death and dying in the Tibetan Buddhist … Continue reading
Marriage at the End-of-Life
A Minneapolis Judge Makes a Tough Call on Love
In honor of Valentine’s Day, we’d like to share this touching story of a deathbed-wedding from the New York Times. from the article Making a Judgment on Love by Minneapolis state court judge Lloyd Zimmerman: “All I wanted was a … Continue reading
Posted in Something Special
Tagged end-of-life, Lloyd Zimmerman, Love, Marriage, Minneapolis, New York Times, Relationships, Valentine's Day
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“What we have once enjoyed we can never lose. All that we love deeply becomes a part of us.”
-Helen Keller
Posted in A Right of Passage
Tagged Death, Famous Sayings About Death, Helen Keller, Loss, Love, Memorial Saying
1 Comment
Is “The Widower Effect” True?
Also Meet the “Broken Heart Syndrome”
Four years ago I went through a completely unexpected shock induced by the separation from my husband after 20 years of marriage. For me, the circumstances of how it happened played as a virtual spousal death, including all the intermingled … Continue reading
Posted in Sharing Suzette
Tagged Broken Heart Syndrome, Cardiomyopathy, Effects of Grief, Grief, Length of Life, Suicide, Valentine's Day, Widower Effect, Widowers, Widows
2 Comments