We recently had the chance to connect with Joe’l Maldonado and have shared our conversation below.
Joe’l , really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What do the first 90 minutes of your day look like?
Prayer, meditation, journaling, brushing teeth, washing face, getting dressed for aqua aerobics.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am known all over the world as The Grave Woman and bring over a decade of groundbreaking expertise and innovation to the fields of end-of-life, death and grief care. As a sacred grief care practitioner, licensed funeral director and embalmer, award-winning educator and speaker, I am dedicated to empowering professionals, organizations and governmental agencies to create and implement culturally sensitive protocols and inclusive practices that honor diverse cultures and traditions.
I am the founder of The Multicultural Death & Grief Care Academy where I offers expert insights into cultural competency and dignified end of life, death and grief care for communities of color empowering organizations to navigate the complexities of serving diverse families, staff and communities with authenticity and respect.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
I would have to say my parents.
What have been the defining wounds of your life—and how have you healed them?
The ending of relationships is always hard for me. Rather that be friendships, romantic relationships and/or death. Each ending has taken a huge toll on me but has also reiterated the importance of celebrating the experience, being grateful for each level of exposure and connection and holding on tightly to the memories left behind.
The way that I heal is through openly discussing my experience, being a vulnerable and transparent as possible and allowing myself to feel no matter how hard it is. I do not numb my experience, I do not try to avoid the pain, I sit with it, in it and allow it to speak to and teach me.
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. Is the public version of you the real you?
Absolutely.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. What do you understand deeply that most people don’t?
That death is not a part of life, it is life. We are always dying in some capacity. Death is the cycle of life and once we learn to see it as not just the end or what happens when life is “over” physically we can understand and accept it as life just as much as we accept birth.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thegravewoman.com
- Instagram: @thegravewoman
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thegravewoman/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegravewoman/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/thegravewoman
