It’s a topic most of us tend to avoid.

But the end of life, dying, and death are the focus of a light-hearted morning of storytelling and arts at City Library on Grand Parade in Cork on Saturday, 17th September.

Good Day Cork (GDC) and Irish Hospice Foundation (IHF) are teaming up to change the narrative on death, with three storytellers lined up to start the conversation, using humour and personal experience to spark what Valerie Smith, IHF’s Public Engagement Lead, calls courageous conversations.

Storytellers include Rosi Lalor, a singer-songwriter whose confrontations with death and dying lead to her song, Our Lady of the Swans.

Her practice of remembering that ‘we and all our loved ones will one day die’—often referred to as the practice of memento mori—’can help us keep choosing to align with what really matters, day by day, breath by breath,’ she explains.

Jeanie Jyanti Noonan will also share a story, and her experiences of honouring loss and death have taught her how, ‘with support and time…to truly live.’

As co-founder of RHEA events, Louise O’Brien has found that the celebration of a loved one’s life can enrich the grieving experience by leaving those mourning with comforting, beautiful memories. By thinking about the end of life, death, and dying, we might bridge the gap between reality and our own expectations, she contends.

Following this, participants will have the opportunity to draw, write, collage, or express themselves creatively.

“We constantly receive messages to delay our aging process, making it a challenge to talk about death and dying,” says founder of Good Day Cork, Joanna Dukkipati.

“There are of course many other reasons that stop us from talking about the inevitable. Together with the Irish Hospice Foundation, we look forward to helping people in beginning to think about the end in a brave and creative space.”

The event is free of charge and all are welcome to join from 10:30pm-12:30pm.