Red's Wrap
Happiness. It's relative.
The Lost Art of Dying and Closed Captioning Walk into a Bar
What I learned today is too depressing to talk about for very long. I sum it up by saying that I attended a fascinating and beautifully constructed presentation on “The Lost Art of Dying,” which included artists’ very detailed depictions of the plague in Europe in the Middle Ages. It was around that time that the Ars moriendi (The Art of Dying) became institutionalized in European culture. Ars moriendi provided a guide to death and dying that emphasized recognizing one’s finitude and preparing for death with the aid of one’s community.
The gist of the session was that we lost the art of dying because of the medicalization of death, weakening of community bonds, and a thousand other reasons and we need to get it back. How exactly that happens is unclear. The session left me feeling hopeless and doomed.
On a more positive note, I learned how to put closed captioning on the little videos I’m doing for my new venture, Jan’s Senior Corner on Facebook. I liked being mystified by this challenge and then finding out there’s a little button to push to get captioning. I also very much like not knowing what I’m doing making these videos and having no idea what I’m going to say until I start. It’s really super fun and so not like me.
Maybe that’s my preparation for death. Learning to wing it.
6 Comments on “The Lost Art of Dying and Closed Captioning Walk into a Bar”
Leave a Reply
Recent Comments
 | Stephanie on However Old You Are, It’… |
 | Pat on However Old You Are, It’… |
 | Nancy Bauer-King on However Old You Are, It’… |
 | MaryG on However Old You Are, It’… |
 | Deb on However Old You Are, It’… |
Snow Door | wisconsinacademy.org
Listen to Jan read her essay “Billy” presented on WUWM’s Lake Effect
Jan’s essay “At the Breakfast Bar” on WUWM Lake Effect
Jan’s essay “The Parish Hall,” on WUWM Lake Effect
“Fury Cannot Touch Me,” Modern Love, NYT, 9/29/11
The topic of death and dying needs to be normalized I think. I’m also unsure how one really defines “dying well”. People of faith, or those with strong cultural ties, may (probably do) define the process much differently that those who choose not to follow a religious or long-standing traditional path but I do not think there is a “best way”.
I completely agree about normalizing the topic. But the pressure to die well seems a bit overwhelming. I am to ‘die good enough.’ LOL
I’m in your camp, Jan. I have it all covered. My will says, no obits, no celebrations w/cracker&cheese, no one has to be notified those who care will already know. I’m a true realist, fatalist, love life but do not ever want to anchor on this planet for ever. There will be others who need my space.
I really like your last sentence. A lot.
This was interesting. I’m sorry the death discussion left you feeling hopeless. I agree, we don’t do it well. We don’t talk about death much either.
Agree on both counts.