Death is never a laughing matter…or is it?
Local author and professional speaker Allen Klein lost his wife to a rare liver disease when she was 34, leaving him partnerless and with a young daughter. While this is certainly not a funny story, it does not mean that his experience was completely devoid of humor.
Connecting humor and death may seem inappropriate. After all, what could possibly be funny about losing your spouse, especially at such a young age?
Well nothing, but that doesn’t mean that humor no longer had a place in Klein’s life. Near the end, as his wife lay dying in the hospital, they both received a lesson in the therapeutic value of humor.
His wife had a copy of Playgirl by the side of her bed and suddenly opened to the nude centerfold, and insisted that he put it up on the wall. “This is too risque for a hospital,” he told her. “Nonsense,” she replied. “Just take a leaf from that plant over there, and use it to cover up the genitals.”
He did as she requested. This worked for the first two days, but by the third day the leaf had begun to shrivel up, and reveal more and more of what it was supposed to conceal.
After this, every time they saw a plant or leaf, they both laughed. Their laughter may have been brief and fleeting, but it brought them closer, revived them, and helped them navigate the painful process of her terminal illness and eventual death.
These small moments of laughter supported Klein during this difficult time and made him realize that humor is not about the denial of loss or the avoidance of pain, but is instead a powerful coping skill that releases pent-up emotions and connects us to other people.
Klein has taken the lessons he has learned through his wife’s death, as well the insights he has gained through his work as a home-health aid, hospice volunteer, and director of The Life-Death Transitions Institute in San Francisco, and put them into a book to help others in their journey through loss and grief. Learning to Laugh When You Feel Like Crying: Embracing Life After Loss is a compassionate guide to the bereavement process in which Klein shares the tools and encouragement necessary for transforming loss into a passion for living life to the fullest.
After Klein’s wife passed he realized that he didn’t need, or want, a 300-page book explaining what grief was all about. What he wanted was a book that would be like a hug from a close friend – a book that would be of comfort and encouragement. Not finding any book like this, he decided to write his own.
Klein’s book isn’t only for those who have lost a loved one; everyone can benefit from his wisdom and perspective. Learning to Laugh When You Feel Like Crying contains helpful information that can support people coping with any type of loss, including the death of a pet, the loss of a job, or a divorce.
Loss, and especially death, are seldom spoken about in our culture, even though they are inevitable parts of life. Learning to Laugh When You Feel Like Crying not only tackles these difficult subjects, it does so in a unique way that focuses on the empowering and life-changing lessons that they can teach us.
Klein’s message is one with universal significance, and your audience could benefit greatly from his expertise on loss and his unique perspective on the therapeutic power of humor. Klein would be an excellent resource to feature (in/on) your (media source), and would make an interesting and thought-provoking subject for an (interview or feature article.) If you would like a copy of Learning To Laugh When You Feel Like Crying in preparation for an (article, review, interview, and/or excerpt) please contact Robyn Webster at (415) 517-3558, or via email at robynannwebster@hotmail.com. You can also contact Allen Klein directly at (415) 431-1913, or through email at humor@allenklein.com.
Thank you for your consideration,
Robyn
