Film Lens
The film follows a man's experience with a life-threatening medical crisis and his reflections on death and life. After a routine operation turns into a near-fatal situation due to a massive infection, he is placed on life support. His friend Steve, who practices traditional healing, visits him and offers a medicine pouch with buffalo hair, emphasizing the significance of death in understanding life. This encounter prompts the man to reconsider his views on mortality and the value of life itself.
As he recovers and moves to Nova Scotia, he grapples with Steve's remark about not sounding like a man who has been given his life back. The film features Stephen Jenkinson, a clinical-practice leader in palliative care, who discusses grief not as a feeling but as a skill intertwined with the ability to appreciate life. The narrative weaves personal anecdotes with broader reflections on death, grief, and the human experience.
Why Watch
- •Meet Stephen Jenkinson, an authority on the 'death trade.'
- •Find out how a near-death experience reshapes a man's outlook.
- •See how grief is framed as a skill rather than just a feeling.
Did You Know
•Stephen Jenkinson is a co-director at the Max and Beatrice Wolfe Centre for Children's Grief.
•The narrator spent time on life support after a routine operation in 2024.
•Jenkinson holds a Master's degree from Harvard University in Theology.
•The narrator moved his family to Nova Scotia after recovering from his illness.
Perfect For
Palliative care professionalsThose facing life changesAnyone interested in grief