As part of an awareness week, which coincides with Dying Matter Week in England (13 to 19 May), a number of events have been taking place to encouage people to talk about and make plans for their care end of life care and what should happen after their death.
As well as death cafes, a film screening, shopping centre displays, workshops, drop-in sessions, and a theatre performance, a number of temporary “Before I die I want to … ” walls have been popping up around the country. Members of the public have been finishing the sentence with the one thing they most want to do before they die.
Inspired by an art project started in New Orleans, walls have been set up all over the world. Hospices both sides of the border, such as CHAS, St Vincent’s Hospice in Renfrewshire and St Michael’s Hospice in Herefordshire, have been using the walls to help start conversations around death and dying. There is also a virtual wall on the Good Life, Good Death, Good Grief website.
Director of Good Life, Good Death, Good Grief, Mark Hazelwood, said: “Everyone in Scotland will die but strangely it can be hard to remember that this will inevitably include our self.
“As a result it is easy to overlook some simple practical steps which can make things easier for friends and family when the time comes. It’s easier to get this stuff sorted out whilst fit and well, and then get on with living life to the full.
“Important actions include legal stuff like making a will and a power of attorney and personal things like considering what music you might like at your funeral and reflecting on what you really want to have done before you die.”
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