The death of Erica Buist's father-in-law sent her into a tailspin. The world suddenly seemed unpredictable and unsafe. She was unable to find her own ground and began to devise ways to stay in her apartment, working at home and avoiding the world. But somehow through that time, she became intensely curious about death itself. Why don't we talk about it? What are we missing? How could it be different? A journalist by profession, she began to explore how people in other parts of the world confront death. Slowly, a plan evolved: she would travel the world to experience death traditions that flew in the face of what she knew from her own culture. She would write a book! And in the process, she would face her fears and re-engage with the outside world, re-establishing her sense of safety and taking her life to its natural next level.