Author Archives: Rachel Jones (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

Surfing the Waves of Grief

J'aime Morrison uses movement to address the grief we physically hold in our bodies
Posted on May 15, 2023 by Rachel Jones (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

In 2015, J’aime Morrison lost her husband, Jim, to brain cancer. Morrison, who is a professor of movement and theater at California State University, Northridge, has a long history with dance and movement – including classical ballet, choreography, modern dance, … Continue reading →

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Facilities Create Fake Bus Stops for Patients with Dementia

Around the world, memory care providers explore fake bus stops as dementia aids
Posted on May 4, 2023 by Rachel Jones (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

How can memory care facilities calm people with dementia and reorient them to their surroundings while keeping them from wandering off? They set up a fake bus stop. Staff at the Benrath Senior Center nursing home in Duesseldorf, Germany discovered … Continue reading →

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Ten Quotes on Disenfranchised Grief

From Victor Frankl to Audre Lorde, luminaries examine the grief that isn't seen
Posted on April 23, 2023 by Rachel Jones (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

What happens to grief that isn’t given the space to exist? The term “disenfranchised grief,” coined by Dr. Ken Doka, refers to the various kinds of grief that aren’t socially recognized, accepted or supported. Also known as unacknowledged grief, this … Continue reading →

Posted in A Rite of Passage | Leave a comment

“The Wolves,” by Paisley Rekdal

A grandmother’s death by MAID is described in poetry
Posted on April 10, 2023 by Rachel Jones (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

It was the week of asking. Asking to watch her eat. Asking if she understood the doctors’ questions. Asking her to explain the difference between wanting to die right now, and dying later. The tumor making certain answers unquestionable. I … Continue reading →

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“Tukdam: Between Worlds,” by Donagh Coleman

A documentary explores the unique death state of Tibetan Buddhist meditators
Posted on March 27, 2023 by Rachel Jones (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

The 2022 feature documentary, “Tukdam: Between Worlds,” delves into the strange and unexplainable post-mortem state of “tukdam,” in which a person dies while meditating yet continues to seem very much alive. Tibetan Buddhist monks who die in this state often … Continue reading →

Posted in Lending Insight | 1 Comment

Does ChatGPT Understand Death?

Some intrepid explorers have asked the AI to write eulogies
Posted on March 16, 2023 by Rachel Jones (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

Ever since OpenAI released ChatGPT, its generative AI bot in November, the internet has been lauding its ability to write poems, explain quantum computing, and even provide dating advice. There has also been much concern over the bot’s ability to … Continue reading →

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