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  "path": "/hospice-volunteering-james-sexton",
  "publishedAt": "2026-02-20T00:10:04.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.upworthy.com",
  "tags": [
    "James sexton",
    "Impact theory",
    "Impact theory podcast",
    "Podcast",
    "Apple podcast",
    "Death",
    "Hospice",
    "Hospice volunteering",
    "Grief",
    "Lawyer",
    "Divorce lawyer",
    "Tim bilyeu",
    "Life",
    "___Impact Theory___",
    "_divorce attorney_",
    "_author_",
    "_James Sexton_",
    "_hospice_",
    "See on Instagram",
    "Photo credit: Canva",
    "_Día de los Muertos_",
    "_Obon_",
    "www.youtube.com"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\n\nIn a recent, thought-provoking episode of the ___Impact Theory___ podcast with Tom Bilyeu, renowned _divorce attorney_ and _author_ _James Sexton_ shared how being a _hospice_ volunteer drastically changed his perspective on life.\n\n\"I think when you turn 18, you should have to do a year or two of mandatory hospice volunteering,\" Sexton said. \"It changed my entire way of viewing the world.\"\n\nSexton recalled that while death itself wasn't necessarily the prime source of conversation—most of his volunteer work involved doing little odds and ends for folks—its presence was still palpable. Because of that, he walked out of each visit feeling like a \"samurai,\" as all the things he thought were \"so important five minutes ago\" fell to the wayside.\n\n\"Spend time with people that are dying,\" he said. \"All their stuff is a great big pile of nothing. Like, all that they can talk about is the people that they love, the connections that they made, the experiences that they had that were beautiful or painful.\"\n\n> See on Instagram\n\nThat realization became even more apparent when he learned that his own mother was terminally ill with cancer and past the point that any doctor could help her.\n\n\"In that moment, all of the other things that I was stressed about and worried about, the volume was turned so far down on all those things because my mom was gonna die,\" Sexton said. \"All that became important was how could I spend a little more time with her. How can I make sure she knows that I love her? How can I savor this?\"\n\nDeveloping an awareness of death during early adulthood, Sexton argued, would help people not get \"distracted\" by a society that constantly tries ****to****make you forget that death is inevitable. Therefore, they wouldn't pay attention to the \"meaningless sh*t that keeps the machine moving,\" and instead focus on what really matters.\n\nAnd what really matters? Important things like kissing a spouse, for example, which Sexton reminded Bilyeu (and, conversely, all of us) happen a finite number of times. You won't know what that finite number is \"until you've passed it,\" he warned.\n\nA couple kissing.Photo credit: Canva\n\n\"If you don't keep that in your line of sight, you're a fool,\" Sexton said. \"You're gonna think you're gonna get to do that forever. You're gonna think you can do that all time and you don't. You will not do that forever. ... And that's the most beautiful thing in the world. It's what makes that so special.\"\n\nFor Sexton, being a hospice volunteer cemented this perspective, and since then, \"nothing has been the same.\" It didn't mean suddenly \"living life like a monk,\" but it did mean sharing his love a little more freely and appreciating that \"things have to end.\"\n\nBetween hospice volunteering and working as a divorce lawyer, Sexton has become an expert of sorts with \"endings.\" He argues that we must look at life through this lens because the one constant is that \"everything is ending all the time,\" and ignoring that fact \"does a tremendous disservice.\"\n\nAmerican culture generally treats death with avoidance, viewing it as a taboo topic or a medical failure rather than a natural stage of life. It is highly clinical and sanitized, with many people dying in hospitals away from family and loved ones. While shifting toward more home-based hospice care, U.S. society remains heavily influenced by \"death-denying\" attitudes that emphasize quick, efficient mourning. Compare that to other cultures with consistent mourning rituals, like Mexico's ****_Día de los Muertos_****and Japan's _Obon_.\n\nPerhaps Sexton's hospice volunteering concept could act as something similar to these traditions—a rite of passage that doesn't have us avoiding death, but walking alongside it.\n\nYou can watch the full _Impact Theory_ episode below:\n\n- YouTube www.youtube.com",
  "title": "Lawyer explains why everyone should do 'mandatory hospice volunteering' when they turn 18"
}