We recently had the chance to connect with Rachel Becker and have shared our conversation below.
Rachel, so good to connect and we’re excited to share your story and insights with our audience. There’s a ton to learn from your story, but let’s start with a warm up before we get into the heart of the interview. What do you think is misunderstood about your business?
I think sometimes people assume that death & grief work is really heavy and hard — and while that’s true some of the time, there’s also so much joy and relief that comes from facing these experiences.
The reminder that everything is temporary helps me appreciate the beauty of life and try to not take it so seriously.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am an artist and death doula / end-of-life guide. For those that don’t know, a death doula is someone that provides non-medical, holistic support to a person that’s dying and/or those that are caring for them. This can involve counseling people through their fears around death and helping them making peace with their lives, designing a meaningful ceremony/funeral to honor a person’s life, assisting with preparations like advanced directives, and a lot more. Something that’s important to me is doing community education on these topics so that we can get more comfortable having conversations about death, dying, and grief, and be more prepared when they arise in our lives.
In my art practice I love to make things using discarded materials — the fragments I find tend to determine what I end up making – whether it’s a collage, a textile piece, sculpture, or installation. Most recently I’m learning about weaving with willow and other plant materials which is opening up a whole other world of possibility for me! Themes that I explore through my work include grief, magic, mystery, and my relationship with the Earth.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
My earliest memory of feeling powerful was climbing the aspen tree in my front yard as a kid. There was a sense of excitement that I could get as high into the branches as I could, and I remember feeling free and alive, knowing that I got up there with my own strength and willpower.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Oof, my own experiences of suffering have taught me humility, in the way that I’ve had to accept the fact that I don’t know everything, can’t do everything, and that it’s okay to receive help. I can only do so much, and learning to let go of control and allow the unexpected to play a part in my experience is a gift. It’s helped me anchor more deeply into my relationships. My own experiences of grief, anxiety, and emotional suffering have given me an appreciation and empathy for other people’s experiences as well.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
I am committed to the work of creating a healthier relationship with death in our culture. I think that an acceptance of death as something natural allows for a deeper and more meaningful experience of living. And I believe that when we can really appreciate the beauty of life while we’re living it, we often have more capacity for kindness, playfulness, forgiveness, and creativity. We might not spend as much time trying to control and dominate out of a fear of the unknown. What if we could approach the unknown with respect and reverence, and even a sense of humor?
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. Are you tap dancing to work? Have you been that level of excited at any point in your career? If so, please tell us about those days.
Making things with my hands brings me the most joy — whether it’s mixing up a tea blend for a client, creating a weird sculpture out of trash, sewing together a quilt, or building an altar for a ceremony. I get deep satisfaction from using my body and physical materials to create something new.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://rachelzbecker.com
- Instagram: @church.of.earth, @rachelzbecker
Image Credits
Photo of me by Zach Becker, all other photos by me
