Good2Go Expo to open conversations on death, love, loss and living life

Wangaratta residents will have a unique opportunity to break the silence surrounding end-of-life topics on Friday 16 October, as The Stage Door hosts the Good2Go Expo and Book Launch. Running from 4pm to 8:30pm, the free community event pairs a hands-on death literacy exhibition, featuring practical resources on wills, advance care plans, and local support, with the official launch of 'The Bird and Bee', a new memoir by local author Rose Sexton reflecting on love, loss, and living life to the fullest, including a theatrical monologue performed in her soulmate's voice. Organiser and author Rose said attendees can expect conversations about death, dying, grief and loss out loud, in daylight, with a cuppa in your hand and nobody whispering. "What I hope people take home is a bit of courage to start a conversation with someone they love about what matters to them at the end," she said. "That one conversation can change everything about how a death goes, for the person dying and for everyone left standing around the bed." Rose said the simple fact that everyone is going to die highlights the importance of the expo and these conversations in the community. "Many of us don’t have a plan in place, which makes it really tough when serious illness takes us by surprise," she said. "In a regional town we don't have the same easy access to services that people in Melbourne do, so we have to be a bit more resourceful and look after each other. "That's what communities used to do around dying before we handed the whole thing over to hospitals and funeral homes and stopped talking about it. "The expo is about taking some of that back. "Knowing what's available locally, who to ring, and that it's actually alright to ask." The expo will feature information resources, a talk on music in funerals and mourning, an expert panel and an “Ask a Death Doula” space. Rose said 'The Bird and Bee' is a love story first, writing it after Bill died in June 2019 and the story just wouldn't leave her alone. "Death comes to visit; it's a bit hard to avoid in this one, but it isn't the point of the book," she said. "Bill was a guitarist and a yogi and a philosopher who'd decided he was done with romance, and I was a nurse and singer in a small town who wasn't looking for anything either. "We started out as friends playing music together, it took us years, and a terminal diagnosis, to finally define what we were to each other." Rose said she had 40 odd years as a nurse sitting with dying people, and then suddenly she was on the other side of it, caring for her soulmate. She said she didn’t have a choice but to share their story. “Our story was amazing, and the more I thought about it, the more amazing it got,” she said. “There was so much in the almost four years we walked together: Music, tears, love and so much laughter. “I started writing in 2019 and finally finished it this year.” Rose described the book as a conversation, the kind they used to have. "The book is written in two voices, mine and Bill's," she said. "I’ve stepped into his shoes - audacious, I know, but I think I’ve captured him well." Rose said she hoped readers are inspired to live life and love while they’re at it (once they stop crying). “Bill said a big yes to life right up until it made sense to say yes to death instead, and I watched him do that with more grace than anyone I’ve seen,” she said. “I'd like readers to close the book and think a little differently about their own ending. “Maybe ring someone, maybe make a plan, maybe book a trip they’ve always wanted to take.” Rose encouraged everyone, whether they're a carer, grieving or perfectly healthy, to come along, promising it will be "less grim than you think". For more information or to register, visit www.g2gproject.com.au. Copies of The Bird and Bee will be available on the day, and Rose will be signing them, EFTPOS will be available.

Good2Go Expo to open conversations on death, love, loss and living life

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