I think the fear of the unknown is a big part of the reason why we fear death but also I think we fear talking about it is that it evidences to others that perhaps we don't have any control and most of us are walking around earth like we we got everything under control, but I don't know anything that's going on.

I'm just doing my best minute by minute, you know?

I think that people actually do want to talk about it.

I think culturally we don't make space for it. I think culturally we don't make space for it.

So what if thinking about death was actually one of the most powerful ways to feel more alive,

to be more present, to embrace every opportunity to live more fully.

It sounds paradoxical, but leaning into our mortality may be essential for living

more authentically and vibrantly.

As a culture, we avoid talking about death at all costs.

We see it as morbid taboo, only to be whispered about hushtones, if ever,

and the actual experience of being a part of

someone's last moments we don't even want to consider it.

Yet my guest today, Alua Arthur, has experienced firsthand how embracing the reality of death can positively

transform how we live. Alua is a death dula, someone who serves as a guide

through the experience of dying death and the aftermath and she's the founder of

going with grace an organization that aims to redefine how we approach end of life

experiences but oddly she spent much of her career as a lawyer before that, before transitioning

into this work in search of a deeper connection and meaning, having experienced death

and loss around her early in life, and becoming aware of how it changes people and how and how differently we

might experience it and how acknowledging it can profoundly change the way we live.

Her book, Briefly, perfectly Human, shares wisdom on getting real about the transient

nature of life in order to craft an authentic existence filled with meaning, through deeply

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