A pilgrimage invites one to be present in stillness and solitude, meeting the unknown and gazing with new eyes. The experience can be challenging and unsettling as questions and truths are revealed. It is a time of deep contemplation where the pilgrim feels “very much apart from the rest of the world...You are an observer” (Watson, 2006, p. 289). this narrative essay shares the transformation that I experienced when I undertook an intentional walk in honor of a friend. The lessons of the journey are transformative and have deepened my life as a woman and holistic nurse.

This quality improvement project describes the initiation of a ceremony at the time of death in a community living center and an acute care setting in a Veterans Administration Health Care facility. The ceremony is a best practice for end-of-life care. Since initiating the ceremony, staff and veterans have expressed a sense of caring, dignity, closure, honor, and connection when performing the ceremony for the deceased. The culture around death has changed due to the ceremony, reflecting Jean Watson’s caring framework where healing can take place in any caring moment where there is an authentic human encounter.