stack of death-related books

Recommended Reading List


We’ve been running our bi-monthly “Living Well, Dying Well” book club now since 2018, spanning genres from memoir and fiction to general non-fiction and how-to workbooks. We have touched on a wide range of topics from the dying and grieving process to specific concerns such as dementia, aid in dying, and the burdens of caregiving. And we try to balance the “dying well” side of things with the “living well” side, too. Friends frequently ask for our list so we will post it here and update it regularly.

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TL;DR Advanced Directives Basics


Although we have a number of resources on this website that will help you think through your end of life wishes or provide you with starting points for a conversation with loved ones about their wishes, we know some of you feel either pressed for time or just overwhelmed by a lot of exposition (or both). So we have put together this “Cliff’s Notes” version of the very basics when it comes to Advanced Directives.

Photographic portrait of Megan Scott

Welcome Megan Scott


In April 2021, two women met who each has a big vision about how we can change conversation and action around death and dying. The overlap in their thinking, however, was a lot bigger than their points of divergence. The relationship between Hereafter Partner founder Leslie Rowley and the amazing Megan Scott continued to grow and we are now delighted to introduce Megan to our community as a Partner who is committed to helping us build resources and programs. 

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Transforming Grief and Redefining Your Legacy: An Exploration


We strongly believe that when people can recognize a more open, judgment-free approach to their own mortality and the ones most important to them, the freer and richer life can become. We are striving to build tools and programs to help more people realize this.

We are seeking your help in contributing to building a meaningful tool to this end. 

Values Worksheet


Participants in the free June “Directive Drumbeat” are receiving a series of five emails throughout the month to help them finally pull their thoughts together and get their Advanced Directives written and signed by the end of the month.

One of the first steps is to think about the values that are most important. This worksheet should help.

Child hiding face by Ulrike Mai

Probate as the Boogey-Man: What is Probate and Why Do I Want to Avoid It?


Almost as strong as Americans’ longing to avoid death is our collective insistence that probate is worse than the boogey-man and is to be avoided if at all humanly possible. It’s as though probate is out there to get you, lurking in your closet, the reason you’re taught to look under the bed before going to sleep.

Emperor Penguin chick and parent

Are my end of life plans meant for me or for the loved ones I will have left behind?


In a workshop I led recently for young people in their 20s about end of life planning and how they can talk with their (mostly older) loved ones about it, a young woman asked a profoundly important question: “Are my end of life plans meant for me or for the loved ones I will have left behind?” I wish I’d taken a moment before I responded.

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How to Help Your Older Loved Ones Through COVID-19


According to a recent Harris poll reported by Forbes, 25% of adults over 65 admitted they’re not very knowledgeable about COVID-19, 77% think they’re “unlikely” to catch it, 91% still plan to go to the grocery store, and only 20% said they would avoid mass transit. (For comparison, only 77% of Millennials plan to keep shopping and 35% plan to avoid mass transit.)

Here are 7 Suggestions for how you can help the older loved ones in your life through this confusing and potentially alarming time…