Book excerpt: Death the Door, Music a Key is an invitation to join a journey that is not always easy, but might just alter the way you think about how you live your life. The journey begins in the fragile moments just before life ends, as we sit beside the deathbed and seek to understand this sacred process through the eyes of a harpist. This book of stories tells of ordinary people in the midst of extraordinary moments: people experiencing grief, loss and the anticipation of death. For the most part, however, it is the story of the author, who followed a calling to sit with the dying and share her music. It paints a picture of the work that I do as a harpist who plays intuitive music at the bedside, the restorative qualities of the harp, and the gift that it brings many. It is my hope that through telling these stories, not only will the lives of those who I have played for be honoured, but also their death. It is my hope that their story will serve as a reminder to others that this experience does not have to be frightening, though it requires acceptance, and acceptance requires courage.This acceptance of death can be rarely found, and when it is, it is unmistakable, for their peace seems to permeate everything and everyone around them.