Luke O'Connell - Funeral Celebrant

14/11/2024

A beautiful and worthwhile conversation. ❤️

As a forensic counsellor and then a grief counsellor, Wendy Liu has spent many years right up close to death. Her work with people who are processing all kinds of losses has brought her a much keener appreciation for life. (R) Wendy Liu was a young woman on a social work placement when she realised....

23/10/2024

Everyone could use some more Elmo in their life. 🙂🥲

01/10/2024

It's sometimes tough to know what to say to those grieving, but just holding space and being present is worth a lot. Often when we try to "fix" or change someone's outlook it's because we ourselves are uncomfortable with the emotional content.

📸 ♥️ MNP

30/09/2024

Worthwhile short read on the nature of male friendship. I count myself lucky to have several mates I can talk to about emotional stuff in a healthy and supported way.

"...women are better at creating situations of “intense emotional disclosure” because of their tendency towards one-on-one interactions with female friends, whereas men prefer to hang out in groups “where intimacy is demonstrated by doing stuff together”."

Some things get easier with age. The intensity of my friendships and the emotionally sharing nature of them has deepened

17/09/2024

As the the two year mark since discovering and embracing vocation approaches, my attention settles firmly on the families I have met, their loved ones who have gone ahead of us, and what they've taught me: the grace and gratefulness displayed by those enduring the pain and suffering of loss; the beautiful and profound nature of love and attachment; the search for meaning we are all embarked on, even if we don't realise it.

"...every journey, honestly undertaken, stands a chance of taking us toward the place where our deep gladness meets the world's deep need.”

Parker J. Palmer, Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation

01/02/2024

In the coming days I’d like to share some of the insights I’ve gained after more than a year of celebrancy – one of them being that if you have socials, you should probably post.

I’ve never been great at self-promotion, and the sensitive nature of this work means the traditional idea of ‘content’ doesn’t really apply.

However, there are some things I’ve learned, relearned or had confirmed that I'd like to talk about, starting with this:

The seemingly final nature of death, as we can know it, and the heavy hand of grief, lends a clarity and poignance to love and life that is beautiful to behold.

01/02/2023

An excellent neuroscientific examination of grief, and some useful practices for dealing with it in a mindful way.

In this episode, I discuss grief and the challenges of processing losses of different kinds.

15/01/2023

Becoming a hospice volunteer continues to be one of the most meaningful and rewarding things I have ever done. It's really just about being there; if you have 4-8 hours a month you can spare, that's all it takes.

Come to one information session to find out more about volunteer roles, training and support.
Tuesday, 7th February, 5pm to 6pm
Thursday, 9th February, 2pm to 3pm
Friday, 10th February, 11am to 12midday
at Geographe Bay Centre, 5 Craig Street, West Busselton

14/01/2023

Thank you for visiting my page, which is currently under construction. I intend to use this mainly to share resources and material related to end-of-life, science-based methodology for dealing with and transcending grief, and how acceptance of the transient nature of our current existence can help us to live well. If you would like to contact me regarding professional services, for fastest response please email services@lukeoconnell.com.au.
Thanks for joining me on the journey.