Willow End of Life Education and Planning

What's the difference between a Legacy Love Letter® and Heart Will®? Because a sudden death is always a possibility, writing a Legacy Love Letter® will create peace of mind that nothing is left unsaid. Writing a Legacy Love Letter® can positively transform your relationship with the intended recipient even if it’s never read by anyone but you. Write your Legacy Love Letter® as if it were the last communication your person will ever receive from you. Thinking of your end-of-life letter in this way will support you to share what matters most and shift something inside you. Legacy Love Letters® make for beautiful gifts—for both the writer and recipient—at any time. A Heart Will® is also sometimes referred to as an Ethical Will, Spiritual/Spirit Will or Legacy Letter. At Willow we make the distinction between a document intended for a specific audience and a broad audience. Different from a Legacy Love letter®, your Heart Will® is intended for a broad audience. It can be handed out or read at your good-bye ritual such as a funeral or celebration or left for those closest to you after you die. Writing your Heart Will® helps you clarify who and what matter most, and can serve as your manifesto for living. We have free resources to guide you in writing both. Check out our "Tools & Resources" at the link below! https://lnkd.in/g-at3JgE #death #endoflife

We need to talk about how people are laid to rest for three key reasons: 1. Acknowledging how someone is laid to rest facilitates grieving. Laying the deceased to rest (legally known as “final disposition”) is a time when the physical body is relinquished to the forces of nature. Noting this universal transformation makes this death real and for many people, this is the beginning of the grieving process. 2. Our laying to rest connects us to our dead and our mortality. Every time we visit family in my parents’ countries of birth, we go to the local cemetery where our relations are buried. People share stories, repeat lineage and tidy graves. I’m reminded that I am a part of those who came before me and that I too, one day, will be “the remembered.” 3. Acknowledging how someone is laid to rest motivates us to get into action. Most of us avoid thinking and talking about our final wishes. Hearing the facts about someone’s final disposition reminds us that choices need to be made and communicated. Your Departure Directions, the term Willow uses for your written guidelines, is a tool for connection and conversation. The next time you have a role to play in a gathering to honour the death of someone you care about, please consider sharing the information of how they were or will be laid to rest. It matters—for them and for those of us left behind. What about you? What impact does it have on you to know how someone was laid to rest? https://lnkd.in/e7864rv5

At Willow, we believe that making sense of life and death will help you enrich, energize and connect you with who and what matters most, thereby inspiring you to live and love fully. However, this is not easy as many of us live in "death-denying cultures" where people are reluctant to acknowledge the reality of death and tend to avoid discussing it. Willow was founded to bust the taboo of death, aging, and illness and help people explore the reality of their mortality in a heart-centered and inquiry-based way. https://www.willoweol.com/

No matter what kind of life you live, how much money you have, or what you think of your accomplishments, consider that you have a legacy. The original meaning of the word “legacy” was “a gift of money or other kinds of personal property or asset granted through a legal will.” Today the word is used more broadly. We believe that legacy is anything handed down from the past or any impact we’ve made on people and the world that continues to exist after we stop working on that thing, or after we die. Willow’s tools and resources are designed to change the conversation around death and dying to include life and living. We don’t help you fill out advance-care planning forms—though this is important and essential work. Rather, Willow’s heart-centered and inquiry-based approach to all things end-of-life, creates opportunities for you to reflect on the life you’re living and connect deeply with your sense of who and what matter most.

Today is my birthday! And it’s a big one.    What do you make of big birthdays? Are you excited about the wisdom and life experience you've gathered as you get older, or do you worry about what's still on your bucket list as another decade is behind you? If I'm to be completely honest, it’s a bit of both for me. Some of the wisdom I’ve gathered over the years: 🩷 Seek joy wherever you can. If you find yourself sweating the small stuff, get over it as fast as you can.  🩷 Happiness always comes from within.   🩷 Be grateful for all that you have. Seek out the light in the darkness. 🩷 Keep an open heart and give people the benefit of the doubt. A few things on my bucket list: ✅ Empower and equip thousands of heart-centered end-of-life educators to help people live with intention and purpose and die graciously. ✅ Fall madly in love with someone. ✅ Spend some months in Sicily as a digital nomad. ✅ Write a book. What do you make of big birthdays?

Tune in for an insightful conversation with Reena Lazar, co-founder of Willow EOL, on the newest "Best Life Best Death" podcast episode! 🎙️ Reena said, "It was such a joy talking with Diane, as we share the philosophy that to live well is to die well, and that exploring our mortality enables us to walk through life with a deeper understanding of ourselves." In this episode, Reena shares her insights about the profound motivation found in life's finiteness. She talks about the transformative power of working backward, and practical steps for meaningful end-of-life conversations. 🌟 Discover how changing the narrative around death and dying can enhance the way you live. Please take a listen and let us know what you think! https://lnkd.in/enHWUbyg #LiveFullyNow #realityofmortality #bestlifebestdeath #endoflife #gooddeath #deatheducation #EndoflifePlanning #deathdoula #EOLdoula #peacewithdeath

Isn't it about time? Join this Willow Workshop® and navigate the path to a purposeful future. Jacqui is a materful facilitator. By the end of the time together you will: ✅ Understand what heart-centered end-of-life planning is all about. ✅ Know what your end-of-life planning priorities are. ✅Be able to overcome obstacles hindering your action. ✅ Have crystal-clear clarity and inspiration. Sign up now and share the journey with a friend: https://rb.gy/qil37u 💖 #EndOfLifePlanning #SeizeThePresent #TransformYourJourney

🌟 Happy New Year, Willow community! 🎉✨ As we usher in this fresh chapter, take a moment to reflect: What barriers stand between you and the life you envision? Let the turning of the calendar inspire you to break free from limitations, embracing the boundless potential that lies ahead. The path to your dreams begins with acknowledging and conquering the obstacles. Whether it's hesitations, fears, or uncertainties, remember, you have the power to shape your narrative. 🌿💪 #NewYearNewBeginnings #BreakThroughBarriers #WillowWisdom