No Weddings and a Funeral

This week, we dive into episode 10 - No Weddings and a Funeral and explore the concept of death and grief; the ritual of celebrating those who have passed on; how we as humans react to loss of life; how an occasion of sadness can also bring moments of joy and more pertinently, how the characters in the episode portrayed these emotions both as givers and receivers.

Listen as Jeff and Dimple draw from their own experiences as they reflect on the episode. Jeff talks about losing his father and meeting some family members for the very first time. Moreover, Dimple talks about her complex relationship with her dad and how she realized that in order to forgive and find compassion, she had to remember the good things and let go of hanging on to the bad.

“In this country, I feel like we have no real ritual around death. You think about a lot of cultures. I know in my culture, the Hindu culture. You look at Mexico with the day of the dead and like so many other places I know that really celebrate the lives that people led and honor the ancestors. And even especially here like Native American communities, Indigenous communities, you see a lot of rituals around death. It’s just awkward here for most people. People don’t want to talk about it. They don’t know how to talk about it, especially in the workplace. – Dimple (02:30)

In This Episode

[01:30] Jeff and Dimple recap the episode “No Weddings and a Funeral”.
[02:30] Dimple’s take on the concept of death.
[10:10] On moments of levity in the episode in comparison to the heaviness of the topic.
[18:20] On having fun at funerals and how a time of loss can become an occasion of joy.
[20:37] Are there rules or a script on how to behave at a funeral?
[23:00] Talking about Rebecca and Ted’s complex relationship and feelings for their dad.
[24:10] Conversation shifts to Ted and Sharon.
[25:02] Dimple talks about 4-7-8 breathing and box breathing.
[34:32] Dimple talks about her complex relationship with her dad.
[39:51] Discussing Rebecca and her mother’s stance on her father cheating.
[40:45] Dimple talks about how our parents shape our perception.
[43:52] Talking about the Eulogy and the singing scene.
[50:20] Jeff on appreciating the imperfections of people to build real relationships.
[52:10] On how grief can be isolating yet everyone at the funeral supports Rebecca by singing.