The public radio program The Really Big Questions just ran an hour-long program titled “What is a Good Death?” It’s worth your time to listen to the podcast of this program.
“Death is all around us, and Americans do everything in our power to ignore it. Not everyone though,” said host Dean Olsher.
He interviews a number of fascinating people, including Mary Roach, author of the book Stiff, about what happens to cadavers donated for research. She herself plans to donate her body to a medical school, but somehow, she hasn’t yet gotten around to signing the papers to finalize the arrangements.
Olsher also interviewed Dr. Jeffrey Piehler, who was a guest on A Good Goodbye Radio back in February. Dr. Piehler wrote a New York Times opinion column about making his own coffin as he faces terminal cancer. He very eloquently talks about how facing your own death makes you fully appreciate life. Download the podcast of my show with Dr. Jeff Piehler.
Other interviews include a guy who makes kits for people to build their own caskets and a reporter who rides along as a dead person is picked up at the hospital and taken to a preparation facility prior to being cremated.
Check out the program at The Really Big Questions’ website, www.TRBQ.org.