Death By Design

Paul King: The day that my dad died is indelibly etched in my mindspace. 

I can’t unsee the staples and indent on his head left behind from a piece of removed skull to make way for the tumor that would take his life. 

I can’t unhear the sounds of my mom’s desperate voice when she discovered he had died while she was sitting in the room.

I can’t unpack how a man can be playing nine holes of golf and splitting wood one day to speaking gibberish on the next.

I can’t understand how a 59yo man isn’t alive to see my or my sister’s wedding, future children, and kickass career. 

I can’t undo the agonizing pain of withholding the truth of my experience. 

My dad had died. And when he did... it blew the lid off my happy family. 

My life was permanently, and irreversibly changed. 

I have been intimate with death. 

<LONG PAUSE>

Everyone and everything on this planet will face the same fate. Stories make it easier. These are those. 

This is The Death Diaries. I am your host, Paul King. 

On this podcast, I’m welcoming conversations about death. 

Together, we’ll seek the deeper meaning of Life (and her wicked-but-misunderstood stepmother, Death.) 

Through self exploration, soul searching, and honest talk, I hope to normalize death.

This way, it won’t be so big and so scary when it happens to you. 

TRANSITION 

This is “D-Squared.” The episode where we square up with death, and don’t back down. 

If you love this episode as much as I do, head over to iTunes, stitcher or wherever you listen and subscribe. 

MAIN 

Dear Diary, Why are we here? If we’re born to die….. what’s the point? 

From the moment of birth you are on a slow and steady march towards dying. 

It seems to me like we’re in denial about what it’s going to be like to get intimate with death. Big time. No one wants to talk about it. We pretend it’s not even a thing, Not yet, anyway. Not for a good long while. At least I hope, rIght?

That seems like a pretty upside down way of thinking about something not a single living thing on this planet can escape. 

It’s almost like we think that just talking about it will bring down the hammer. 

Add in the feelings of isolation, shame, guilt, and denial, the stigma….. It’s really bringing us down. You know, as a people. 

To be ready for anything, it behooves humanity to be a lot more open to understanding death. 

I mean, what really does happen when you expire as a person….. or as a dog? What is the natural process, Diary? I just can’t wrap my head around it. 

How do we talk to the kids, what’s considered “normal” in grieving, and what the hell do I do next? 

I’m tired of feeling uncomfortable, that butterflies in the tummy feeling that means HIGH ANXIETY. (Yeah, yeah, THAT feeling. You know what I'm talking about.)

I’m sick of the topic being so taboo. It's one humongous elephant in the room. 

Diary, today I am taking my life back. 

I’m making a commitment to stop avoiding the topic.

We’re having the tough talk. And We’re putting it all on the table. 

Just listen. 

TRANSITION

All I wanna know is, are you in? I double dog dare you stop ignoring the big, scary topic of death and be ready to face it like the resourceful, brave, and authentic human you are. 

Let’s get it out there. 

Are you afraid to die? Fear that someone that you love is going to die? 

We're going to talk about planning for death and really taking control of how you personally will die. What happens physically during the death? And what happens afterwards?

The Death Diaries Podcast is going to explore different philosophies and talk to people from all walks of life, different backgrounds. What is their story? 

Reincarnation, heaven versus hell, and multiple philosophies around this and that. We’re going to talk about after death rituals and ceremonies, the celebrations of life, and burials.

Let’s go deep on how to talk about death, with adults and kids. 

While we’re at it, let’s dissect the whole grieving process. There are a ton of feelings that come with it, the isolation, feeling ashamed, the lack of knowledge…..and a lot of that leads to denial. 

And just what does it mean to live a fruitful, fulfilled life? we're born to die so what are we doing every day to live this fulfilled life that truly makes all of us happy? 

We'll talk about dying in the digital age and social media. We're going to talk about all that stuff.

So if you (or someone you know) has an experience or a story you'd like to share, head on over to thedeathdiariespodcast.com and let us know. We'd love to have you on the show.

Again, it's thedeathdiariespodcast.com. 

OUTRO

This has been the first episode of The Death Diaries Podcast with your host Paul King.

Subscribe on iTunes, or wherever you get your podcasts to be notified of future episodes. Let’s talk about death, are you in? 

https://www.thedeathdiariespodcast.com