What is a good goodbye?
A good goodbye is a final loving interaction, leaving lasting memories and no regrets. It can change you forever and for the better.
The Good Goodbye
By: Maureen P. Keeley and Julie M. Yingling
Death is one thing we cannot control. We will all face the death of a loved one. And many, if not most, people in our culture will be hesitant and unprepared to say goodbye.
The Good Goodbye is meant to help those who must say goodbye to a loved one who is dying. In it, readers will discover how culture affects final conversations, and that often the last interactions may not consist of words but gestures and expressions. They will find examples from real people interviewed over many years, with themes that include love, everyday talk, taking care of business, identity messages, spiritual messages, and healing difficult relationships.
What do you say when someone you love is dying?
What do you say when someone you love is dying—and you know your time together is limited? In this practical and compassionate episode, Judy Oskam talks with Dr. Maureen Keeley, a leading researcher on end-of-life communication, from Texas State University.
Words That Stay With Us
Takeaways from The Good Goodbye
About Maureen Keeley
Maureen Keeley has been a Professor at Texas State University for the past thirty years. For almost four decades she has been teaching, researching, and writing about the verbal and nonverbal communication in family and close relationships, with a goal of improving peoples’ lives and relationships.
Twenty-six years ago, Maureen’s mom was dying from cancer and, while her family and she surrounded her with love and care at the end of her life, they weren’t sure how to talk with her or what they wanted her to say to them. Maureen went looking for answers and found nothing, because no one had asked family members about their conversations with their dying loved ones, so researching communication at the end of life became her life’s work.
About Julie Yingling
Julie Yingling is a writer, painter, gardener, and professor emerita from Cal Poly Humboldt. For twenty-five years, she taught, researched, and wrote about children’s communication and interaction across the lifespan.
As an academic, she published research articles, texts, and book chapters. Near the end of Julie’s career, Maureen wanted a partner on a passion project and asked her to collaborate on exploring people’s conversations with dying loved ones. Julie missed the opportunity to be with her father when he died because she couldn’t get to him in time when weather delayed her flight. This project gave her the opportunity to reflect on all the correspondence and visits they shared during his last year of life.
