I sat down with J.S. Park, hospital chaplain of 11 years at a Level 1 trauma center, for one of the most profound conversations I’ve ever had on this podcast.
And before we even hit record, life had already handed us a plot twist: our original recording date had to be pushed because J.S.’s own mother was struck by a drunk driver and became a trauma patient at the very type of hospital where he works. Just sit with that for a moment.
What followed was a conversation I’ll never forget, and one I know you won’t either.
We talk about:
✨ What it’s really like to be a chaplain in a Level 1 trauma center
✨ What J.S. learned about grief from suddenly being “on the other side” when his mom became a patient
✨ How he processes the emotional residue of caregiving
✨ The concept of being a “mid-road companion”
✨ Asynchronous grief in families and why everyone grieves on a different timeline
✨ Why rituals and storytelling at the bedside matter more than most people realize
✨ The grief literacy gap
✨ End-of-life lessons: what people actually regret, and how J.S. is living differently because of it
✨ His book, As Long As You Need
Whether you’re a grieving person, a caregiver, or someone who loves someone who is hurting, this episode is going to meet you exactly where you are.
