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End of Life Conversations: Normalizing Talk About Death, Dying, and Grief

End of Life Conversations: Normalizing Talk About Death, Dying, and Grief

By: Rev Annalouiza Armendariz & Rev Wakil David Matthews
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About this listen

What if we could normalize and destigmatize conversations about death and dying, grief, and the many types of loss in our lives?


In this podcast, we'll share people’s experiences with end-of-life. We have reached out to experts in the field, front-line workers, as well as friends, neighbors, and the community, to have conversations about their experiences with death, dying, grief, and loss.


Our goal is to provide you with information and resources that can help us all navigate and better understand this important subject.


Reverent Mother Annalouiza Armendariz and Reverend Wakil David Matthews have both worked for many years in hospice as chaplains and volunteers, and in funeral services and end-of-life planning and companionship. We offer classes on end-of-life planning, grief counseling, and interfaith (or no faith!) spiritual direction.

We would love to hear your feedback and stories. You can email us at endoflifeconvo@gmail.com.


Please subscribe to our Substack here: https://endoflifeconvos.substack.com

We want to thank Wakil and his wife's children for the wonderful song that begins our programs. And we want to thank our excellent editor, Sam Zemkee. We also acknowledge that we live and work on unceded indigenous peoples' lands. We thank them for their generations of stewardship, which continues to this day, and honor them by doing all we can to create a sustainable planet and support the flourishing of all life, both human and more-than-human.

© 2026 End of Life Conversations: Normalizing Talk About Death, Dying, and Grief Social Sciences Spirituality
Episodes
  • What Really Happens During Embalming? + Aquamation & Human Composting - Dealing with Grief, Dying, and Death

    What Really Happens During Embalming? + Aquamation & Human Composting - Dealing with Grief, Dying, and Death
    Feb 28 2026

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    Embalming is often treated as a default. But how much do we actually understand about it?
    In this episode, we speak with Ray Chel, creator of the online zine The Lil’ Undertaker’s Embalming Guide. Using a fictional mortician narrator, Ray created an accessible and creative way to explain the embalming process while also introducing alternatives such as aquamation and natural organic reduction, commonly known as human composting.
    Rather than teaching the technical steps, this conversation explores:

    • Why embalming is so rarely discussed openly
    • How families end up choosing it
    • What alternatives to embalming are gaining traction
    • The rise of green funeral options
    • How creative media can reshape death literacy

    Whether you work in the death space or are simply trying to make informed decisions before a crisis, this episode offers insight into how funeral practices are evolving.

    Instagram: @chelsartistry

    TikTok: @chelsartistry and @villagevultures

    https://chelsartistry.etsy.com/

    Season 3 Episode 6 - Compassionate End-of-Life Care for the 2SLGBTQIA+ Community with Tianna Dargent

    Season 1 Episode 18 - Providing Resources and Support for the LGBTQ+ Community - with Grief Specialist Gary Sturgis

    Season 3 Episode 5 - Culturally Sensitive Training with Joe'l the Grave Woman



    Support the show

    You can find us on SubStack, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and BlueSky. You are also invited to subscribe to support us financially. Anyone who supports us at any level will have access to Premium content, special online meet-ups, and one on one time with Annalouiza or Wakil.

    And we would love your feedback and want to hear your stories. You can email us at endoflifeconvo@gmail.com.
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 8 mins
  • Is Conflict in Our DNA? Tribalism, Scarcity, Death, Dying and Collective Grief

    Is Conflict in Our DNA? Tribalism, Scarcity, Death, Dying and Collective Grief
    Feb 23 2026

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    We keep watching the same pattern repeat: wars, political division, cultural breakdown, and families fractured over ideology. Many of us quietly ask, “Why can’t humans just stop fighting?” There’s exhaustion in the air. A sense that the world is locked in permanent conflict.

    And beneath the headlines, many of us feel something personal: anxiety, grief, helplessness, even shame for not knowing what to do. If you work in death-positive spaces or support grieving people, you’ve likely felt how global conflict leaks into individual loss.

    You are not wrong to feel worn down by it. You are not naïve for wishing it would stop.

    What if the issue isn’t that humans love violence? What if conflict is often a maladaptive survival strategy rooted in fear, scarcity, and tribal wiring? Much of what we call hatred may actually be unprocessed grief and threat response. Scarcity beliefs, protection of “our people,” and fear of death can activate ancient survival instincts.

    Instead of asking, “Why are humans so terrible?” we might ask, “What are humans afraid of losing?”

    This shift doesn’t excuse harm. But it helps us understand the emotional architecture underneath it.

    In this episode we'll discuss:
    - The Evolutionary Roots of Tribalism and Conflict (Why humans divide into “us vs them”)
    - Scarcity Mindset and Fear of Death (How fear and survival anxiety drive power struggles)
    - Collective Grief and Generational Trauma from War (How unprocessed loss fuels ongoing cycles of conflict)

    By the end of this episode, we’re not just going to understand why humans fight. We’re going to explore how recognizing collective grief changes the way we show up in our families, our communities, and even in moments of disagreement. There are practical ways to interrupt the cycle in small, meaningful spaces.

    Stay with us, because the shift from conflict to awareness begins closer to home than we think.

    Support the show

    You can find us on SubStack, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and BlueSky. You are also invited to subscribe to support us financially. Anyone who supports us at any level will have access to Premium content, special online meet-ups, and one on one time with Annalouiza or Wakil.

    And we would love your feedback and want to hear your stories. You can email us at endoflifeconvo@gmail.com.
    Show More Show Less
    34 mins
  • When the Meal Train Stops: Creating Sacred Space After a Death or Loss - Rituals for Healing Grief and Remembrance

    When the Meal Train Stops: Creating Sacred Space After a Death or Loss - Rituals for Healing Grief and Remembrance
    Feb 21 2026

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    Many of us lose someone or something, and then… nothing. The funeral ends, the job is over, the relationship crashes. The meal train stops. But somehow, the world keeps moving. We are told grief is something to “process,” “get through,” or quietly endure.

    You may feel like you want to do something to honor your loss… but you do not know what that something is. Maybe you think rituals are only for religious people or that creating an altar feels dramatic. Or that it might make the grief heavier instead of lighter.

    If you have ever felt unsure how to acknowledge your loss in a real, tangible way, you are not alone.

    The issue is not that you are grieving “wrong.” The issue may be that we no longer create intentional spaces for grief.

    Ritual is not about religion. It is about giving attention to your grief and loss.

    A sacred space does not have to be elaborate. It can be as simple as a candle, a photograph, a stone, or a handwritten note.

    Instead of asking, “How do I move on?” What if we asked, “How do I make space?”

    Creating sacred space after loss is not about holding onto pain. It is about giving grief somewhere to land.

    In this episode, we'll share:
    - How to Create a Grief Ritual at Home
    Simple, accessible ways to begin without pressure or perfection.
    - What to Put on a Remembrance Altar
    Meaningful objects, intention, and how to personalize the space.
    - How Ritual Helps You Process Grief
    The emotional and psychological impact of intentional remembrance.

    By the end of this episode, you will have practical, doable ways to create a sacred space that feels authentic to you. We will talk about small rituals that take minutes but can shift how grief moves through your life. And we will explore how gratitude and community can transform remembrance from something heavy into something sustaining.

    Support the show

    You can find us on SubStack, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and BlueSky. You are also invited to subscribe to support us financially. Anyone who supports us at any level will have access to Premium content, special online meet-ups, and one on one time with Annalouiza or Wakil.

    And we would love your feedback and want to hear your stories. You can email us at endoflifeconvo@gmail.com.
    Show More Show Less
    32 mins
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