#DeathPositive
@Piratito
Some favorite hyperfocuses:
#HistoricalFashion
#upcycling
#repurposing
#refashion
#victorian everything
#cemeteries
#bats
#mushrooms
#snails
#BeachCombing
#MudLarking
#ZeroWaste
#SecondHand
#oddities
#curiosities
#foraging
#Handmade
My personality traits:
#ADHD explains a lot
#GenX
#AntiRacist
#environmentalist
#VintageStyleNotVintageValues
#DeathPositive
Today is Talk in an Elevator Day - the perfect day to share community death literacy ideas!
Why not start a conversation today?
#GDEP #DeathLiteracy #DeathLiteracyBarbie #opportunity #AskAnnetta #conversation #CompassionateCommunities #fun #DeathPositive
It's #FridayFriends day!
An open access journal article about end of life doulas has been published in Palliative Care and Social Practice https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/26323524231186826?fbclid=IwAR1_lCYDRs1WJPa0koUAVFTfFayNZ70QDBaicFJSCmtJEk4TdV9Isqj8Yac
Led by the incredible Marian Marian Krawczyk, the International End of Life Doula Research Group IEOLDRG members Emma Clare, Erin Collins, Sarah Farr, Elizabeth Johnson, Jennifer Mallmes, Annetta Mallon (me!), Kelly Oberle, and Jennifer Rigal all contributed to this article.
I'm honoured and grateful to work with this group.
What's happening in your Friday world?
#GDEP #IEOLDRG #EOLD #EOLDoula #DeathDoula #research #academia #writing #DeathPositive #AcademicChatter
Follow me for more funeral hacks 👍🏻
(but seriously, I can help you think of ways to personalize funeral services)
#HisAndHearsePress #Funeral #FuneralService #Mortuary #MortuaryScience #DeathPositive #CelebrationOfLife #Pinata #Bees
As a well spent day brings happy sleep, so life well used brings happy death.
- Leonardo DaVinci
#HisAndHearsePress #Quote #QuoteOfTheDay #DeathPositive #LeonardoDaVinci #Cemetery #Funeral
Thought I’d do an updated #introductions post… I joined :mw: in November 2022. I live in the Midwest US with my 2 rescue kitties, Oliver and Melvin. Here are a few topics that I’m interested in and sometimes post about!
#weirdhistory #morbidhistory
#paranormal #ghosthunting
#deathpositive
#gnomes #mushrooms #cottagecore
#cats #cuteanimals
#movies #popculture
#traveling
#cemeteries
#gardening #gothgardening
What soap is for the body,
Tears are for the soul
- Jewish Proverb
#HisAndHearsePress #Proverb #JewishProverbs #Quotes #Grief #GriefQuotes #GriefAndLoss #Mourning #HaveAGoodCry #CryingIsHealing #DeathPositive
Well… they’re *not* wrong 🤷🏻♀️
#HisAndHearsePress #Cemetery #Headstone #Gravestone #IncorrectSignage #Funeral #Mortuary #PainStopsHere #TheyreNotWrong #DeathPositive #StandingStoneSunday
📸: Kayla Faustus or…?
People: "I hope I go to heaven after I die"
Me: "I hope the most diverse little ecosvstem grows from the soil of my decomposed body - just the coolest plants, fungi, little insects, birds, animals, microbes just thriving on my remains…”
Words: @wokescientist
Artist: @emossillustrates
#HisAndHearsePress #NaturalBurial #GreenBurial #HumanComposting #AlkalineHydrolysis #EcoFriendlyFuneral #DeathPositive #MortuaryScience #SustainableFuneral
Relax, Baby ✌️ 🌱
#art #drawing #skeletons #deathpositive #comics #illustration #inkonpaper #skull #skeleton
After a fascinating and thought-provoking day of presentations which used the prompt "Rethinking end of life doulas and..." at Douglas College in New Westminster BC, I have a weekend to grapple with my jetlag before diving into our symposium work with the International End of Life Doula Research Group. Thank you to the End of Life Doula Association of Canada and Douglas College (which has a terrific training program for EOLDs, including First Nations people and cultural needs).
Including representatives from the four countries where EOLDs are most strongly represented (Australia -me! - Canada, UK and USA), this upcoming week will explore research options and ideas for the next year or two.
I suspect a truckload of grant writing is in my future!
Stay tuned for updates and have a great day. Oh Canada! 🇨🇦
#GDEP #EOLD #IEOLDRG #DeathDoula #EndOfLifeDoula #research #collaboration #community #discussion #symposium #DeathPositive #planning #DeathLiteracy
Wow, the pace keeps increasing on Mallon Model downloads, now at over 3,300. 😍
You're welcome to join in the micro compassionate community movement and read the free article here: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/26323524211052569
Avoid carer burnout, support end of life and best quality ongoing care at home in an easy, straightforward way. Online masterclasses for international time zones are available, email info@gdep.com.au for details.
#GDEP #MallonModel #AskAnnetta #ComCom #EndOfLife #HomeBasedDying #carer #caring #support #network #masterclass #research #academia #AcademicChatter #OriginalResearch #CompassionateCommunity #EOLD #DeathDoula #DeathPositive #DisabilitySupport #care #EndCarerBurnout
🦇 Hey all you bat fans! It’s International Bat Appreciation Day. Besides symbolizing death and rebirth, they also do us a solid by eating the worst creatures on earth (mosquitoes) and helping other pollinators like bees and butterflies. They’re not horrible! They’re vital for maintaining a healthy ecosystem. Plus they’re goth AF, in case that’s why you’re here. 🦇
#HisAndHearsePress #BatAppreciationDay #BatDay #Bats #BatsOfInstagram #BatFan #BatsAreCool #GothAF #DeathSymbol #DeathAndRebirth #DeathPositive
“Lest we forget,
a morgue is also a community center.”
- Ocean Vuong, Time Is a Mother
(From a DVAN book review: “In his sophomore poetry collection, Time is a Mother, Ocean Vuong meditates on how we think about death as individuals and as a community, and how we shoulder the weight of intergenerational trauma. Vuong reframes death and mourning as lonely processes into something communal.”)
#HisAndHearsePress #OceanVuong #TimeIsAMother #DVAN #Poetry #Quote #GriefQuotes #LiteraryQuotes #Grief #Funeral #Morgue #DeathPositive
“Don’t cry because it’s over,
smile because it happened.”
- Dr. Seuss
#HisAndHearsePress #DrSeuss #DrSeussQuotes #Quotes #GriefQuotes #Funeral #Cemetery #DeathPositive #AI #AIArt #AIArtwork
#AmReading: All the Living and the Dead:
From Embalmers to Executioners, an Exploration of the People Who Have Made Death Their Life's Work
By Hayley Campbell
Real talk: I was hesitant when I first saw this book because I knew it had the potential to sensationalize or demonize the funeral profession. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that Hayley interviewed exceptional people and portrayed them accurately. Phew!
She didn’t shy away from the graphic nature of each person’s occupation, but she also kept it within a professional context. I appreciate her efforts to shine a light on the workers people prefer to ignore and prove that we’re compassionate and empathetic rather than a flock of vultures (fun fact: it’s actually called a “wake” of vultures).
As a funeral director and embalmer, I highly recommend this book. Everyone ought to know a bit about what happens behind closed doors before passing a broad judgement based on stereotypes.
FYI, this book covers the duties of workers in the USA and UK. Practices and laws vary by location. Here’s the book’s blurb:
“A deeply compelling exploration of the death industry and the people―morticians, detectives, crime scene cleaners, embalmers, executioners―who work in it and what led them there.
We are surrounded by death. It is in our news, our nursery rhymes, our true-crime podcasts. Yet from a young age, we are told that death is something to be feared. How are we supposed to know what we’re so afraid of, when we are never given the chance to look?
Fueled by a childhood fascination with death, journalist Hayley Campbell searches for answers in the people who make a living by working with the dead. Along the way, she encounters mass fatality investigators, embalmers, and a former executioner who is responsible for ending sixty-two lives. She meets gravediggers who have already dug their own graves, visits a cryonics facility in Michigan, goes for late-night Chinese with a homicide detective, and questions a man whose job it is to make crime scenes disappear.”
https://bookshop.org/shop/hisandhearsepress
#HisAndHearsePress #BookRecommendations #BookRecs #Bookstodon #Bookwyrm #Nonfiction #DeathPositive #Funeral #Mortician #DeathCare #DeathProfessional #HayleyCampbell
Yes. Yes, you should bring pants.
Just because a casket lid is usually closed on the foot end doesn’t mean you can’t see or that nosy people won’t poke around and look. Also, think about how embarrassing it’ll be for your loved one as they attend ghost parties with no bottoms. Shameful.
On that note, there are no requirement about what dead people have to wear in their caskets. You want to be dressed in a suit? Fine. Pajamas? That’s okay too. Superhero costume? You do you! All we ask is that it fits reasonably well (though we can improvise with a few alterations) and that it covers anything that needs covering (autopsy incision, trauma etc). When in doubt, go for something long sleeved and high necked. Make your wishes known to your family!
#HisAndHearsePress #Funeral #Mortuary #Casket #Coffin #PatrickStewart #Meme #GhostOutfit #MortuaryScience #DeathPositive #YouDoYou
Happy Easter to those who celebrate. Best of luck to those whose children have consumed nothing but sugar today. 🥚🐇🍭🍫🍬😵💫
#HisAndHearsePress #Easter #EasterSunday #EasterBunny #EasterEggs #EggHunt #Cemetery #Graveyard #Funeral #DeathPositive
Am I late to the Barbie Party? It’s Spring Break over here and I’m up to my eyeballs in children and kittens. They go back to school on Monday (the kids, not the cats), so hopefully I’ll get back to posting regularly. Until then…
#HisAndHearsePress #ThisBarbieIs #Barbie #BarbieMovie #BarbieMeme #BarbieGenerator #StrangeAndUnusual #FuneralDirector #Embalmer #Mortician #Undertaker #DeathPositive
"I’ve learned that life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes."
- Andy Rooney
( 📸 unknown, DM for credit)
#HisAndHearsePress #Quotes #AndyRooney #ToiletPaper #ToiletsWithThreateningAuras #DeathQuotes #FunnyQuotes #Funeral #DeathPositive #PottyHumor #SillySunday
“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.”
- Thomas Campbell
#HisAndHearsePress #Grief #GriefQuotes #GriefAndLoss #Death #Funeral #Cemetery #DeathPositive
Sometimes death casts a shadow over celebrations. It’s helpful to make a plan: how do you want to spend the special day?
The dread or anticipation of a birthday, anniversary, or holiday can be worse the the day itself. Decide in advance if you want to include the memory of your loved one or try to distract yourself from the loss. Think about whether you’d prefer to be alone, be with a few close people, or be surrounded by a crowd. Do you want to stay home, or go out? It’s okay to take a break from or even permanently change traditions. Don’t feel obligated to do things just because you*always* do it that way.
In time, you’ll learn how to balance grief with celebrating. Sometimes all you can do is laugh and make the best of a terrible situation, like the family who made a dumpster fire birthday cake. Read their full story here:
https://www.today.com/food/people/teen-dumpster-fire-cake-honors-moms-birthday-dad-death-rcna77450
#HisAndHearsePress #GriefAndLoss #Grief #HolidayGrief #BirthdayGrief #DumpsterFire #BirthdayCake #Funeral #DeathPositive #GrieveYourOwnWay
Anybody else remember this? About 10 years ago, J&D Foods offered this magnificent tribute to bacon lovers.
Known for their bacon flavored salt, soda, mayonnaise, lip balm, and lube (yes, lube), J&D commissioned an 18 gauge steel casket with a bacon themed design.
For the low, low price of $3000, you can get your own pork-wrapped forever box, AND they’ll even throw in a bacon scented air freshener! Yum 🥓
#HisAndHearsePress #Casket #Coffin #Funeral #Mortuary #Bacon #BaconLovers #BaconForever #JAndDFoods #JDFoods #BaconSalt #DeathPositive
Sunday #DeathLiteracy fun!
Did you know that Death is pansexual?
Yup. Because, you know, Death comes for us all...
Have a great day everyone!
#GDEP #EndOfLife #DeathPositive #fun #humour #GoodStuff #AskAnnetta
“How strange this fear of death is! We are never frightened at a sunset.”
- George MacDonald
#HisAndHearsePress #Quote #Quotes #GeorgeMcDonald #Death #Funeral #Grief #Sunset #DeathPositive #SilentSunday #StandingStoneSunday #Cemetery
💀 Skulls!
“You probably don’t think much about skulls. So what’s the big deal about them? Well, every head of every person you’ve ever seen has a skull inside. And that includes you!”
This is a super cute kid’s book explaining that rather than being scary, skulls serve several very important purposes. Namely, they’re like a car seat for your brain and have holes for sounds, light, air, and grilled cheese sandwiches. Fun!
Skulls! by Blair Thornburgh
See it and other funerary type book recommendations at:
📚 https://bookshop.org/shop/hisandhearsepress
#HisAndHearsePress #Skulls #Bookstodon #Bookwyrm #BookRecommendations #BooksRecs #KidsBooks #DeathPositive #BodyPositive #KidLit #ChildrensBooks #StrangeAndUnusual #GothBooks
“The song is ended, but the melody lingers on.”
- Irving Berlin
#HisAndHearsePress #Quote #Quotes #IrvingBerlin #Grief #GriefAndLoss #Death #DeathPositive #Music
It's "Ask a question day" so I'm here to help with your curiosity about grief,death literacy,end of life, dying, voluntary assisted dying, home funerals, the Mallon Model and any other death-positive questions you have.
#GDEP #AskAnnetta #EndOfLife #AskAQuestionDay #DeathLiteracy #DeathPositive #DeathDoula #grief #love #question #curiosity
ID: a purple background, a picture of a smiling woman with white curly hair and a colourful scarf around her neck, and text. "March 14th is "Ask a question day". What would you like to know about end of life, dying, death, or grief?
Leave a comment or email info@gdep.com.au Dr Annetta Mallon Gentle Death Education and Planning gdep.com.au"
Today is National Barbie Day. Why don’t we have a funeral director Barbie yet?!?
Barbie has made great strides in the past decade, showing children that girls can grow into any number of career paths. Women in STEM? Yes please! We still don’t have a mortician option though. Since mortuary schools are now over 70% women, it’s high time we were represented as a valid profession to aspire to.
Want to sign a petition for Mattel to create Undertaker Barbie? Here ya go!
https://www.change.org/p/mattel-tell-mattel-to-create-a-funeral-director-barbie
#HisAndHearsePress #Barbie #Mattel #NationalBarbieDay #BarbieDay #BarbieDoll #Petition #WomenInStem #MortuaryScience #MortuarySchool #FuneralDirector #Mortician #DeathPositive #AIArt
#WordyWednesday: Shrouding Women
When you think of morticians, you might conjure images of creepy old men in black suits. But did you know that they've only been "in charge" of the dead for the last century or so? Before that, men were typically responsible for building coffins and digging graves. Body preparation fell to the women!
Women were already tasked with nursing the sick, distributing herbs, and aiding in childbirth, so bathing and dressing the dead was a natural progression. Since it was a duty that demanded care, gentleness, and propriety, men were simply unsuited to the task. Enter the shrouding women.
Many neighborhood women became skilled and knowledgeable in the art of preparing the dead. They understood the weather's effect on decomposition and how to tend to bodies suffering from various conditions. They lent their expertise to those in need, not for monetary compensation but as an act of community.
Duties included preparing a cooling board (sometimes an ironing board or barn door placed over chairs), washing and dressing the corpse, closing the eyes and mouth (coins on eyes and jaws secured shut with tied rags or forked sticks propped against the breast bone), and otherwise arranging the body into a restful pose.
Commercialization of death care after the Civil War led cabinetmakers to evolve from coffin builders to embalmers. They wrested control of bodies away from women, claiming women were weak, delicate, and unable to tolerate the sight of blood. As the men rose into the ranks of professionals, women were relegated to the sidelines of death care. They became decorations. Trade journal advertisements portrayed men doing funeral work and women as objects of beauty. The foundation was laid for men to dominate the industry for the next 100 years.
Fortunately, we've come full circle and women are entering funeral service in droves. Over 70% of graduating mortuary science classes are women. Turns out we *can* handle some blood after all.
#HisAndHearsePress #InternationalWomensDay #WomensDay #WomenInSTEM #WomenSupportingWomen #DeathCare #FuneralService #MortuaryScience #MortuarySchool #DeathPositive #FuneralDirector #Embalmer #Mortician #Undertaker
“The grave is but a covered bridge, leading from light to light, through a brief darkness.”
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
#HisAndHearsePress #Quote #Quotes #QuoteOfTheDay #Longfellow #HenryWordsworthLongfellow #Death #DeathPositive #Beetlejuice #IYKYK #TuesdayThoughts
“Death is more universal than life. Everyone dies, but not everyone lives.”
- A. Sachs
#HisAndHearsePress #Monday #MondayMotivation #Quote #Quotes #QuoteOfTheDay #WordsToLiveBy #DeathPositive #Death
Viking funeral pyres: sorry, but…no
It sounds super cool, but you’re not going to get set adrift on a flaming boat. It’s not that we don’t *want* to, it’s because:
- It’s not legal. There’s like, one place in the US that has permission for open air cremation, but they do it on land.
- It’s not historically accurate. Flaming funeral boats were not practical. It was too expensive to build and burn traditional longboats. Cremations we’re performed, but more often on land. Burial was acceptable too, and mounds were sometimes shaped to look like boats. Higher ranking men (and women!) could be buried with their actual boats.
- It’s not practical. Not only would it be very costly, it wouldn’t be effective. The fire wouldn’t be able to burn long and hot enough to fully consume the body before either extinguishing or sinking the boat. That means partially burned limbs washing up on shore, which is unanimously frowned on within the US.
If you’re dead set (pun!) on a burning boat, you *might* be able to get away with a token version. Have the cremation performed in a real crematory, then put the cremated remains on a tiny boat. Be very conscious of local laws and fire safety! You don’t want to adversely affect the environment or spark a wildfire.
Are you just looking for alternatives to standard burial and cremation? Look into whether water cremation (alkaline hydrolysis) or human composting is legal in your area.
#HisAndHearsePress #Funeral #Viking #Vikings #Norse #VikingFuneral #FuneralPyre #Cremation #OpenAirCremation #DeathPositive
#FuneralFactFriday: Fantasy Coffins of Ghana
Hey new friends! Here’s what happens: I post fun facts about death and funeral related topics, especially on certain themed days. For the past couple weeks, I’ve accidentally on purpose tied all of my posts to cats (Not literally, don’t ever tie anything to a cat). Sooo, here’s a cat-shaped coffin!
For the past 70 years, master carpenters in Ghana have custom built “figurative” coffins. Families choose a theme based on their loved one's occupation, hobbies, personality, or symbolism from proverbs. You want to be buried in a lobster? They can do that!
The tradition began in the 1950s when the village chief commissioned a palanquin shaped like a cacao pod (it’s a fancy enclosed platform with handles so people can carry you — very fancy). Unfortunately, the chief died before it was finished. The villagers opted to use it as a coffin after parading his body around town in a procession.
The idea caught on. Other chiefs and priests were similarly honored, then regular folks began to request specially made coffins. The idea is for dead people to remember something of themselves in the afterlife and to highlight their social status.
Carpenters and their apprentices hand carve the special shapes from local wawa trees, usually taking about 2-6 weeks to complete. Urgent orders can be completely faster if several carpenters work together. A fantasy coffin usually sells for about $1000, but for perspective, the people buying them are typically earning about $3 a day!
Popular designs include airplanes, animals (family totems), Coca Cola bottles, shoes, cellphones, luxury cars, fish, and Bibles. If you do a Google image search, they’re fascinating to see! Which one would YOU choose???
#HisAndHearsePress #Coffin #Ghana #FantasyCoffin #CoffinDance #Woodworking #CustomBuilt #Funeral #Casket #DeathPositive #FBF #FollowFriday #FollowBackFriday
Looking for #deathpositive peoples to follow/take inspiration from/enlist as mentors. End of Life Doulas, death educators, thanatologists, FDs, embalmers, anybody else... give me a ping :) #thanatology #mortuary
It’s me! Also, are you new around here? You might think everything I post is cat related. This is an exception to my usual programming due to the recent acquisition of a stray cat and her four kittens. Once I run out of cat content and cat puns, it’ll be strictly business again. ☠️🐈⬛
(haha yeah right, it’s always weird here)
#HisAndHearsePress #Death #Funeral #DeathPositive #Cats #Coffee #Weird #CrazyCatLady #CaturdayEveryday
February 14 isn't just Valentine's Day. It's also National Donor Day, which is an observance dedicated to spreading awareness and education about organ, eye and tissue donation.
I advocate for organ and tissue donation whenever I can, despite the extra work it causes for embalmers. It's worth it. A single donor has the potential to save or improve *75* lives!
The absence of an organ in your grave means the presence of life in another person. Learn more about how it works, plus dispel myths and misconceptions here: https://www.louisepachella.com/blog/seasonofgiving
USA readers, register as a donor here: https://www.donatelife.net/
#HisAndHearsePress #DonateLife #ShareTheLove #NationalDonorDay #OrganDonation #TissueDonation #ValentinesDay #Embalming #Funeral #DeathPositive
It’s been a minute since I’ve been active on social media. I think I ended up in LaLaLand for a bit after the holidays and never made it back into a routine. The longer I stayed away, the harder it was to jump back in!
Help me get back on track: tell me what you’d like to learn about this year. What are your biggest funeral/death related questions?
#HisAndHearsePress #FuneralFacts #DeathPositive #Mortician #Undertaker #FuneralDirector #Embalmer #MortuarySchool #MortuaryScience #WritersCommunity #AuthorsSupportingAuthors
Oh hey, new friends! I'm not sure which rockstar boosted the "yawning tentacle cat" post, but my notifications have been blowing up. Feel free to skim through my older posts and follow if they catch your fancy. The gist of me: I'm a funeral director/embalmer turned writer and educator. I love books, cats, nerdy stuff, memes, and humor.
I haven't been very active this week (see comic below - it's not mine but it's accurate AF), but the new year will bring all kinds of new and weirdly fascinating posts. I promise.
In the meantime, drop a comment here if you want to chat. I've missed a bunch of comments and follows (I usually follow back if you look like an awesome human), so catch up with me here!
#HisAndHearsePress #Hi #NewFriends #FollowFriday #FollowBackFriday #Welcome #Introduction #Mortician #Author #Writer #Educator #DeathPositive #Catstodon #CatsOfMastodon
Looking to follow people with startlingly unusual content? That's me!
I'm a funeral director and embalmer turned writer and educator. I love teaching others about dead bodies and funerals, but in a light and easy to understand way. I want to help mitigate fear and stigma through open discussion. Ask me anything! (Bonus: if you're a writer, I can totally help set your scenes and ensure accuracy!)
I try to share themed posts like #MondayMourning, #WordyWednesday, and #FuneralFactFriday. I also love books, memes, cats, dogs, dinosaurs, trash cats, welding, and demolition derby driving.
So I'm a bit all over the place, but guaranteed to be one of the most interesting people around!
#HisAndHearsePress #FollowFriday #FollowBackFriday #NiceToMeetYou #Funeral #FuneralDirector #Embalmer #Mortician #MortuaryScience #DeathPositive #Author #Writer #WritingCommunity #Catstodon #Dogstodon #Bookstodon #Bookwyrm
Hello! I'm Louise Pachella, the mastermind behind His & Hearse Press. I'm a licensed funeral director, embalmer, writer, and death educator.
I love answering questions and helping people understand all things death and funeral related. My specialty is teaching authors to write accurately.
Ask me anything! I'm here in a social and educational capacity.
I'm also a fanatical book reader, a welder, a demolition derby driver, a mom, a dinosaur owner, and a trash cat lover.
#Introduction #Introductions #Welcome #Newbie #Funeral #Death #DeathPositive #Embalming #Education #MortuaryScience #Writing #WritingCommunity #Author #WritingTips #Bookwyrm #Bookstodon #NiceToMeetYou
I forget that since I migrated my account, I probably need a new #introduction. I’m a #gay #lesbian #agender #jewish #writer and death doula/death educator who has a thing for #fountainpens and #ink. I also love #planners and #scifi and reading awesome authors in #specfic and #ya. I mostly write #nonfiction articles but sometimes you can catch my #bad #poetry.