Volunteers may ask patients if there is a family member or friend they want to talk with, but reconciliation is never pushed. Ostaseski has seen remarkable resolution of family issues, but he's also witnessed a situation in which a patient refused to contact his mother. After the patient's death, the mother was glad he hadn't. Because hospice care is not limited to a therapeutic hour, but available 24 hours a day, Ostaseski says volunteers must be ready to listen whenever the patient is ready to talk. That means we have to continually cultivate this openness in ourselves, this availability and readiness.
Volunteers keep a collective journal of each experience with a patient.
Initially, one volunteer was assigned to one client, but the project has found that it's better to work in a community on a shift schedule, with the volunteer coming into contact with all the clients during that shift. No one person is carrying all the responsibility, so the volunteers can give themselves fully, and then they can let go. Volunteers have always been available to hear clients tell their life stories in an informal way, but the Zen Hospice Project has some volunteers who are particularly adept at encouraging storytelling. Ostaseski recalls an English professor who would record oral storytelling sessions, then transcribe them into a booklet for the patient, who in turn could decide whether to give it to a loved one. The Zen Hospice Project's workshops and other educational programs are in great demand.