Death and Transition Series at LICHEN CENTER presents a class on “Living Funeral Ceremony” with Suzanne Belle Stone
“The Living Funeral Ceremony offers an experiential, transformative opportunity for people to contemplate their own mortality. Participants are led through the rich mystery of their life by meditating upon their past, present, & unfurling future.
In this roughly two hour ceremony, each participant is led to contemplate their own memorial as they imagine letting go of their earthly selves. They are guided to write their last words & desires and be gently led through a death meditation using guided imagery. Many have found this experience to be transforming, life-affirming & even life-redirecting.
Some reasons a person may wish to experience a Living Funeral Ceremony include wishing to overcome fears of death, facing changes in their lives that feel final, feeling curious about death and / or tending to the intensity of this last year. This ceremony is for anyone who feels prepared to experience their own mortality. I feel honored to be able to lead people through this intimate, compassionate experience of meeting their own impermanence.
Herbal tea will be served at the end of the ceremony as we return from the Underworld to our Earthly lives & begin to assimilate this experience.” - Suzanne
Suzanne Belle Stone is a Community / Intuitive Herbalist who lives with & honors the spirals of the seasons. She tends & is tended to by herbal / tree allies & land spirits where she resides along the coast on Wabanaki land, often called Maine. Here she grows & co-creates herbal creations with these plant allies. Suzanne teaches classes that focus on honoring relation with the verdant world, hands-on co-creating with plants, kitchen & Tree medicines, planetary & plant folklore & magic of her Irish / Scottish / French / Celtic ancestry as well as paying homage to the wisdom of other traditions & ways.
As part of a becoming ancient / modern village deathcare citizen practice, Suzanne offers Living Funeral Ceremonies (virtual & in-person), herbs for grieving/loss, ritual & ceremony & design / implementation of memorial gardens to honor loved ones.
Suzanne has most recently completed the UVM End-of-Life Doula program, the Village Deathcare Citizen course with Anne-Marie Keppel as well as becoming a Living Funeral Practitioner with EOL doula Emily Cross, the founder of this practice. She is currently working towards Hospice volunteer training.
Suzanne’s Website Suzanne’s Instagram
When: Sunday, June 27, 2-5pm
Where: LICHEN CENTER, Blue Hill, Maine / Penobscot Territory
Cost: $45 per person. There will be a maximum of 8 participants. Contact Suzanne directly for scholarship and sliding scale opportunities.
This offering will take place outside, so please bring what you need to be warm and comfortable. We will provide water, tea and chairs. If you need any specific accommodations, please let us know.
Sign-up by June 25, 2021