Gareth O'Callaghan: Death comes to us all — that's why we need to talk about it

It's dying, not death, that's the difficult part

The final say: Talking to a dying loved-one might ease their fears and burden.

After his wife died, a friend said to me: "I wish we had talked to each other more about her death, because I believe I could have helped her by just listening to what she might have said to me; anything to ease what she must have been going through.

"But I didn’t. I avoided the difficult conversation. I feel like I let her down at a time when she needed me the most. Now, it’s too late.”