An Interview with Kay Shama Will, RN, M.Div. 

As a hospice nurse,

 I am invited into peoples’ lives at a 

most auspicious time —during the end-of-life process. I have 

the opportunity to see God’s grace unfold in profound ways. 

This may mean something as simple as having the right 

resources available when they are needed. The end-of-life 

time is richly textured and most of the people I work with 

come to know this. One family member I worked with said 

that she wished people would not pity her by saying “how hard this must be 

for you,” when in fact it was the best time she was ever able to have with her 

father. Life is a wonder and the time of transition is a wonder.  

When I get home in the evening, the things I experience during the day 

do not lend themselves to usual dinner conversation. In fact, conversation 

frequently stops for quite some time after I share my day with my loved ones. 

They, too, enter that place of wonder and a different perspective .

Kriya Yoga teachings provide a larger context within which I can place the 

many components of this sometimes messy human existence. The foundation 

of Kriya Yoga is firm, solid and unchanging, but at the same time beautiful 

and supportive of a full and meaningful life. My formal education and experi-

ence as a nurse, as well as my study of the Kriya Yoga teachings on the nature 

of Reality, join to become a sweet offering of which I am blessed to be the 

instrument. 

My commitment to practicing self-discipline, study, and surrender 

(compassionate dispassion) supports the work I do and enables me to be fully 

present for the individual facing the end of life and their family members.  

This loving presence is my gift to everyone I come in contact with. The more 

I learn about Reality, and the birthless, deathless nature of who and what we 

truly are, the more beautiful my work becomes. The more I practice compas-

sionate dispassion, the easier it is for me to be able to share with my family, in 

more subtle ways, the wonder that this life truly is. I count this as a blessing 

for all of us. 

YOGA AT WORK: Spiritual Practice in Daily Life  
Kriya Yoga is a spiritual philosophy and practice that supports 
spiritually conscious, engaged, responsible living in the world. It’s 
a practical method that is appropriate for people from different 
backgrounds who are engaged in many different walks of life.