I am excited and honored to announce that I have been featured in Dr. Boyce Watkins online publication www.financialjuneteenth.com . Please click the link to read the article and learn more about the wonderful work that Dr. Boyce Watkins and his staff are doing to educate and empower the African American community. I would like to say a special thank you Maria Lloyd for all of her help in making this possible. Thank you Maria, you are the best!!!!!
What do total randomness and love for everything related to funeral service and mortuary science have in common? ME... Daughter, Sister, Traveler, Free Thinker, Funeral Service Professional in Training, Mortuary Science Enthusiast & Lover of Life!
Friday, June 12, 2015
Saturday, April 4, 2015
You Tube Launch/ Photoshoot
After much hard work and procrastination my You Tube Channel is finally live. My vision and goal with starting this vlog is to stimulate an open and honest conversation about death; while exploring funeral and burial cultures/customs around the world.
Please Remember to Watch, Subscribe, Share and Stay Tuned.
Below are a few pics from yesterday's photo shoot with Miki from Miki McClendon Media.
© Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman, 2015. Unauthorized use and/or
duplication of this material without express and written permission
from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts
and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to
Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman with appropriate and specific
direction to the original content.
Sunday, January 25, 2015
The Conversation: The Hood Skala
This past Monday I had the pleasure of speaking
with Diamond Graves aka The Hood Skala. In addition to being a high
school physics and mathematics teacher in Richmond, VA The Hood Skala has
combined his knowledge and unique teaching style to become a YouTube sensation
with his channel Hood Skalas. In our interview we discuss his
perspectives on life and death as they relate to mathematics and I am
introduced to the concept of thought experiments. To listen to the
interview and leave your feedback please click on the link below.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/ thegravewoman/2015/01/19/life- and-death-the-conversation-ft- the-hood-skala
To learn more about The Hood Skala please and experience his unique teaching style for yourself please visit his YouTube channel.
To learn more about The Hood Skala please and experience his unique teaching style for yourself please visit his YouTube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ0qJ0rXPhWSOmdLQ24OxMQ
© Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman, 2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
© Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman, 2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Thursday, January 15, 2015
Life and Death: The Conversation ft The Hood Skala 01/19 by The Grave Woman | Education Podcasts
Tune in on Monday, January 19th, 2015 at 10:30 AM
Life and Death: The Conversation ft The Hood Skala 01/19 by The Grave Woman | Education Podcasts
Life and Death: The Conversation ft The Hood Skala 01/19 by The Grave Woman | Education Podcasts
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Transforming Spirit, Mind, and Body
Reasons I want to LIVE
There is a distinct difference between simply existing and truly living. Many of us have spent the majority of our lives merely existing and going with the flow. Personally the last few years of my life I have existed by living as what I can best describe as a “normal” life. Though I have enjoyed many wonderful accomplishments and experiences like many of you I feel as if I am barely scratching the surface of what living truly is and involves. I have become accustomed to the unfulfilling routine of waking up, going to work, coming home, going to bed and repeating while managing to squeeze time with loved ones, a social life and personal time in between but recently I have been inspired to truly explore the art of living.
I consider myself to be a very blessed person. I have my health, a loving and supportive family and all of my needs are met but my spirit still is pulling me towards ??? (Exactly what I do not know, I would hate to use the word more because what I have is enough and what I am seeking can not be measured). At times I question whether I am being what could be considered as ungrateful or selfish. I wonder whether my yearning for more is due to a negative or unbalanced perspective BUT when I examine my motives and intentions at the end of the day I do believe there is truly an experience of life that goes beyond everything that I have experienced to date and I am determined to do what it takes to LIVE it.
Let me be clear in stating that I am well aware and have ample understanding that I have no control over my predetermined time, place, and experience with death. Nor do I have control over the circumstances and situations that will present themselves throughout my life's journey. However, I do believe that there are choices that we as individuals make consistently (both consciously and unconsciously) that have a direct impact on the QUALITY of life we experience. In order to share my exploration and transformation I have compiled a list of my top reasons for not only wanting to exist in this physical realm but LIVE and have the best quality of life that I can!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
At first I was going to list 10 reasons but in order to be as genuine as I can and allow for time and the experiences that I will have to shape my perspective I will be updating this list from time to time. You see what we value today may not be what we value a year, a month, a day or even a second from now. Today I was able to come up with these reasons:
1. I am grateful for and enjoy my life.
2. I have not seen the physical manifestations of the visions that God has placed in my heart and spirit.
3. I want to spend as much quality time with my family and loved ones as I possibly can and fully enjoy EVERY second.
4. I have not fully lived up to the potential of my best self.
5. The is so much in life that I have not experienced yet am looking forward to. These things include but are not limited to being a wife, being a mother, being an aunt, being a grandmother, great grandmother, great-great grandmother, being a business owner, being a world traveler and experiencing cultures around the globe.
6. The world is full of so much love and natural beauty that I want to experience firsthand!
7. I do not want to die and find out that I missed out on the life I was created to live because I was afraid to follow my spirit, heart, dreams, and deepest inner desires by limiting myself to all that I could see physically.
What are your reasons for wanting to LIVE?
© Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman, 2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Monday, March 24, 2014
Ready or Not: The Law of Attraction vs. Preparing for Death
Disclaimer- The opinions and facts expressed in this post are not meant to offend anyone. Any information posted to this blog is intended to educate and challenge your perspective.
The Law of Attraction stems from the belief that “like attracts like”. Basically what you think about has the power to create circumstances, situations, and even physical manifestations of your thoughts. For example if you were to think about, visualize and meditate (replay over and over again in your mind) positive or good thoughts then the world around you will be full of positivity and goodness. On the other hand if you were to think about, visualize and mediate on the negative thoughts your world will be full of negativity. Though this belief has been recorded throughout history the concept became popular in modern times with the publication of Rhonda Byrne’s The Secret. The Law of Attraction is even believed by many to be backed up by several religious texts including the bible i.e. Proverbs 23:7 states that “as a man thinketh in his heart; so is he”.
Ever since I was a little girl I have been curious about death and the care of the dead. That curiosity has evolved into a career in the death care industry that that has answered many of my questions about the care of the deceased and ignited a passion for educating the world about funeral service and mortuary science while encouraging others to plan for their funerals and burials before they are actually needed. Needless to say that most of my thoughts have to do with death in some form or another and because of this most of my conversation relates to death in some fashion. To me this is completely normal but I have learned over the years that others are not as open to discussing death and dying so freely.
As a child I would frequently ask family members, friends and random people questions about death in general conversation. In most cases I received responses delivered with such uncomfortable facial expressions and body language that I would hesitate to ask more questions until something peaked my curiosity so strongly that I could no longer resist. Even today in conversations about death and making preparations with the families I work with, my own family members, friends and complete strangers; like clockwork those same uncomfortable, fearful, anxious facial expressions and body gestures are displayed by most.
This has led me to question if people actually believe that by having a conversation about death and by planning for funeral and burial arrangements they may in turn be knowingly or unknowingly using the Law of Attraction to bring death upon themselves and others?
In reality the truth of the matter is that none of us of knows when or how we will die and the suspense is literally killing us. (LOL, not funny but I couldn’t resist). We live in a society that works very hard at making us believe that we are in control of everything and that by doing this, eating that, driving a vehicle with these safety features, and working out for this length of time this many days a week we can live longer lives. Though taking these measures has been proven to improve the overall quality of life in many cases; they cannot guarantee that one additional second or breath will be added to our lives. In many cases the reactions and responses that I have received in conversations about death and preparing for death in my opinion reflect the belief that "if I talk about it or think about death it’s going to happen and if I don't acknowledge death, death can't get me".
I encourage any of my readers who may be avoiding communicating your desires or educating yourself about preplanning and/or prefunding for end of life care and funeral/ burial because you believe that you are in some way attracting death to yourself or others (either knowingly or unknowingly) to challenge your perspective and consider the following:
1. Death is going to happen whether you talk/think about it or not
2. Death is not only going to happen to you but to your Mom, Dad, kids, your friends and everyone else you know
3. We as human beings have little to no control of when or how we will die. Anything can happen at any moment that can results in the loss of life. (God Forbid)
I wish everyone could live forever but by accepting the FACTS I feel as if not only are we as individuals more likely to make the most of everyday and experience a heightened quality of life but also in some weird way we are exercising true control by making the conscience decision to prepare to the best of our ability not only for ourselves but for our loved ones.
In conclusion I have to be honest and say that YES there cases when preened arrangements are made and required to be used sooner than hoped; but does this equate to attracting death? For example, on Christmas day 2011 my Aunt Janine (who is a funeral director) was visiting from Florida. There we are sitting around enjoying opening gifts and out of the blue she receives a call from work informing her that a couple whom she helped less than a week prior make prearrangement's for their funerals and burials had been killed in a plane crash. The timing in this situation can be perceived as spooky or perfect. Personally, I believe and know for a fact that had they not made their arrangements their families would have been forced to deal with so much more than the shocking and devastating loss of their loved ones.
DEATH IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO EVERYONE! READY OR NOT?
© Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman, 2015. Unauthorized use and/or
duplication of this material without express and written permission
from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts
and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to
Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman with appropriate and specific
direction to the original content.
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
An Appointment with Death
© Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman, 2015. Unauthorized use and/or
duplication of this material without express and written permission
from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts
and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to
Joe'l Anthony and The Grave Woman with appropriate and specific
direction to the original content.
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