The In-Between: Unforgettable Encounters During Life's Final Moments

Content Warning: This section references death and dying, including descriptions of a healthcare system that at times fails patients as well as descriptions of ailments such as Alzheimer’s. It also touches on suicide and abortion.

“While it’s true that there are tough—and sometimes even devastating—moments in this line of work, there are many more beautiful ones.”

This quote introduces the main message of the work: that beauty can be found in dark places. Vlahos uses juxtaposition to emphasize the depth of these emotions, placing the word “devastating” in close proximity to the word “beautiful.” This structure reflects the idea that one must experience devastation in order to experience beauty, establishing the theme of The Connection Between Peace and Suffering.

“I’m sharing these stories because there are so many misconceptions about both death and the process of dying. I get it.”

Stating outright one of her purposes for writing, Vlahos works to gain readers’ trust by demonstrating where she is coming from. Before she was a hospice nurse, she admits, she too was unaware. Now, however, she wants to communicate the beautiful truths about this line of work.

“While I still don’t have all the answers, the one thing I can tell you for certain is that there are things that defy medical explanation, and that in between here and whatever comes next, there is something peaceful and powerful. I’ve seen it with my own eyes, time and time again.”

Vlahos’s honesty is meant to disarm the reader as she admits she cannot explain everything she will explore in the book. She uses alliteration—“peaceful” and “powerful”—to suggest the beauty of what she agrees is impossible to explain. She asks the reader to trust her because she has witnessed firsthand what she is going to relay, and she underscores her experience in this field with repetition: “time and time again.”