About Our Work
One thing...
... connects all of us to every single human who has ever been or who will ever be. Every single person who is born will die.
Let's not wait to forge a relationship with death until we're on our deathbed, or our loved one is on theirs.
In the manner of the ancient mystery schools, and all true initiatory rites, let's learn to die before we die, so that we can become graceful in the face of our own deaths, supportive in the process of others', and live more fully, while we are alive, as fearless and joyful presences in a world bounded and made beautiful by mortality.
Who is this work for?
Anyone who is mortal. Anyone who loves anyone who is mortal. Anyone who feels overwhelmed by the big work of change and transformation. Wherever and whenever we are, in the world, our world is changing. Much of what we know is always dying - for better and for worse. Death rehearsal teaches us how to grieve loss, support the inevitable - and deeply healthful yet often painful - process of change, and remain joyful, empowered and empowering participants in the world.
How do we do it?
We follow a primordial map, described by esotericists, Earth-based spiritual practitioners, indigenous cultures, folklore, and religious teachings, and verified by thanatologists and modern-day deathworkers like death doulas and hospice volunteers. We unwind the Elements of Life - Earth, Water, Fire, and Air - releasing their attachments and thanking them for their lessons. We learn about, practice, and observe that unwinding as it manifests physically, emotionally, cognitively and spiritually.
About Us
Mnemosyne (Laurie Dietrich)
Mnemosyne (Laurie Dietrich)
Mnemosyne (Laurie Dietrich)
I live in Bulbancha ("land of many tongues" in Choctaw), a place stewarded by the Choctaw, Chitimacha, and Houma peoples before French colonization in 1718.
My deathwork includes experience as a death doula and community facilitator. I have worked in hospice as a chaplain, administrator, board member, caregiver, and volunteer. I work in my
I live in Bulbancha ("land of many tongues" in Choctaw), a place stewarded by the Choctaw, Chitimacha, and Houma peoples before French colonization in 1718.
My deathwork includes experience as a death doula and community facilitator. I have worked in hospice as a chaplain, administrator, board member, caregiver, and volunteer. I work in my local community with a nonprofit dedicated to affordable, sustainable deathcare options for everyone.
I see that we live in a death-phobic and grief-illiterate society, allowing our fear-based denial of death to justify turning the care of the dying over to medical experts and gatekeepers, to leave those whose lives are ending, all too often, feeling profoundly alone.
I want to be a part of returning that care to communities, to families both blood and chosen. I want to educate and empower all of us about our rights and agency in this work - as people who are dying and as people who care for those who are dying
I am also an artist (image, text, performance) and ritualist whose life, art, and work have all been made richer through relationship with death.
Boneweaver (Pamela V Jones)
Mnemosyne (Laurie Dietrich)
Mnemosyne (Laurie Dietrich)
I live halftime in the rightful lands of the ^ ^ (Osage pronounced wah-zah-zhay), Shawandasee Tula (Shawanwaki/Shawnee), and Monongahela Culture peoples. The other half of the time I live in the rightful lands of the Pagiwoc or Paciwoc, Hatteras(k), Roanoke, Croatan, and Lumbee peoples.
I am a deathworker in my religious communities, hel
I live halftime in the rightful lands of the ^ ^ (Osage pronounced wah-zah-zhay), Shawandasee Tula (Shawanwaki/Shawnee), and Monongahela Culture peoples. The other half of the time I live in the rightful lands of the Pagiwoc or Paciwoc, Hatteras(k), Roanoke, Croatan, and Lumbee peoples.
I am a deathworker in my religious communities, helping others to gently remember that this life is finite, that learning about the process of death plus practicing for that eventuality is a worthy endeavor. I believe every person is their own expert.
Before the pandemic changed everything I was a hospice volunteer vigil sitter. Before that I was the person unafraid to talk about the dying, to promote their autonomy, and to help families and beloveds co-create approaches to navigating the terrain of a loved one dying that allowed the dying person’s agency to remain intact. I consider this to be a paramount piece of my Life’s Work.
I am an artist who is most alive at the seashore. When I cannot be there I thrive where I can hear sounds of nature, smell the green, and feel the reaching roots beneath my feet. I believe in connection. I believe in you.