Generally, open discussions about death and dying in the U.S. are awkward at best and ignored at worst. It is often said that a son or daughter truly becomes an adult when they lose one or both parents. Yet, even when a parent has a prolonged illness and the inevitable is near, it remains difficult to accept the fate and to put those feelings and fears into comprehensible words. Sometimes, after a parent has died, surviving family members feel guilty in realizing that there are things they could have expressed to their father or mother before they passed. Often, we wish that we had more time to spend with them or tell them how much we love them.

Ondi Timoner