What we learn when we learn we are dying.
When my father was 38 years old, he entered hospice care for end-stage liver disease. I was a teenager at the time and angry about his disease, his prognosis, and what he was leaving behind.
One of my big regrets in life is not talking to him more during this time. I would have liked to have known what it was like for him to face his own death, what he thought about life, whether he had regrets, and what he would go back and change if he could?
Instead, what I was left with was a small box of his things. For the last 30 years I have been trying to piece together who he was through the things he left behind – letters, poems, pictures, and personal items. I’ve gleaned a lot through this “investigation,” but it will never match what I could have learned by talking to him.
In late 2023, a good friend of mine was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer. We had both lost our own fathers as teenagers and I started telling him about my regrets around not having any meaningful conversations with my father as he was dying. I thought out loud, “Wouldn’t it be interesting to do a podcast with people facing terminal illness, to try and understand what’s truly important in life for those whose time is running out?” My friend thought this was a great idea and volunteered to be my first guest. Thus, the 9 Count Podcast was born.
I’m very excited to announce that production has begun on this limited series. On 9 Count, we’re interviewing 9 diverse voices, exploring what it’s like to face their mortality and what they have learned about how to live. We’re covering topics such as finding purpose, healing old wounds, life after death, and what it means to leave a good legacy.
Subscribe to our email list to get updates and release dates. If you know someone who may be interested in participating, encourage them to reach out on our contact us page.
Thanks!
Travis Luther