For Maryland hospice nurse and death care coach Katie Duncan, working in end-of-life care often reveals quiet, unexplainable moments. One such mystery she’s witnessed repeatedly is what she calls “the reaching”—a gesture many dying patients make in their final moments: lifting their arms or hands upward as if trying to grasp something invisible.
Katie describes patients reaching toward the air, sometimes accompanied by soft smiles or words like “Mom is here” or “They’re waiting.” Others say nothing but gaze peacefully at a corner of the room or reach upward with startling clarity after hours of stillness. Though science hasn’t explained it, hospice workers like Katie see it often—and never with fear.
Instead, these gestures bring a strange comfort, as if those passing are greeted or guided by something—or someone—beyond. Katie calls it one of the most humbling parts of her work. “We don’t fully understand it,” she says, “but it’s beautiful.”
Her story struck a chord online, with many sharing similar experiences: loved ones smiling at unseen figures or speaking to those already gone. Whether it’s heaven, memory, or something more, the reaching becomes a final message of peace—reassurance that, in their last breath, they are not alone.