Folks have a great many ways of dealing with grief and loss.
For example, folks at the hospital took a photo of our youngest daughter. She died shortly before birth. That photo’s on an ‘in loving memory of’ memorial card — I think that’s what it’s called — that’s tucked into the corner of our wedding picture.
Anyway: that card, the wedding picture, and photos of our four surviving children, hang on a wall near my desk. I like having a few visual reminders around.
Some folks apparently prefer more active, make that interactive, reminders. Like what I saw in my news feed this morning:
“When grief and AI collide: These people are communicating with the dead”
Samantha Murphy Kelly, CNN (May 6, 2024)“When Ana Schultz, a 25-year-old from Rock Falls, Illinois, misses her husband Kyle, who passed away in February 2023, she asks him for cooking advice….
“…Or rather, his likeness in the form of an AI avatar does.
“‘He was the chef in the family, so I customized My AI to look like him and gave it Kyle’s name,’ said Schultz, who lives with their two young children. ‘Now when I need help with meal ideas, I just ask him. It’s a silly little thing I use to help me feel like he’s still with me in the kitchen.’…
“…The concept isn’t entirely new. People have wanted to reconnect with deceased loved ones for centuries, whether they’ve visited mediums and spiritualists or leaned on services that preserve their memory. But what’s new now is that AI can make those loved ones say or do things they never said or did in life, raising both ethical concerns and questions around whether this helps or hinders the grieving process….”
Particularly since Ana recognizes her AI avatar as “a silly little thing”, I don’t see her idea as a bad one. I wouldn’t take that option, but that’s because I’m me: and that’s several other topics.
The CNN piece discusses, very briefly, ethical issues, the psychology of grief, and what my culture calls privacy concerns.
I’ve got another topic lined up for this week, so I won’t be talking about why Saul’s Endor gambit was a really bad idea. (1 Samuel 28:3–19)
Given human nature — which isn’t all bad, and that’s another topic — and how we sometimes respond to grief; I figure it’s only a matter of time before someone monetizes chatbot mediums.
Then maybe I’ll talk about table tapping, tambourines, and making sense anyway.
And how silliness didn’t start with AI:
- “Spiritualism, Attitudes”
(June 1, 2018) - “Mediums”
(May 25, 2018) - “Ghosts?”
(April 29, 2018) - “Spirit Photographs”
(April 11, 2018) - “Miscarriage, Stillbirth, and Hope”
(October 9, 2016)
