Activity time: 5 minutes

Light the chalice and share these words from Kate Walker:

We open our hearts to love,
yet sometimes find pain.
We open our hearts to connection,
yet sometimes find loss.
We yearn for simplicity,
yet sometimes find complexity.

Our hearts heal, find connection
and we embrace life in all its simplicity
and its complexity,
with love, with trust and compassion.

Call attention to the covenant you have posted and ask participants to reaffirm their willingness to let it guide your time together.

Explain that in this workshop you are going to talk about two related topics, both emotionally charged but in different ways. Suicide and suicide prevention is one topic. The right of terminally ill people to die in the manner and time of their own choosing is the other. Urge participants to take care of themselves emotionally, especially if they have had experiences that make these topics deeply personal. Assure them that they should share only as they feel comfortable.