What's It Like When There's No Tomorrow? - Ami Baio On Grief, Games, And Her Dad

From an early age, Ami Baio was curious about death and grief. As a game designer and the creator of Pink Tiger Games, she eventually turned that curiosity into Proof of Life, a conversational game about death, grief, and talking about what matters most to the people in our lives.

In a professional and personal overlap, as Ami was finishing the game, her father was dying of cancer.

Ami's relationship with her dad had changed dramatically over the course of her life. After her parents divorced when she was five, she and her father became separated from each other, and their relationship was complicated for many years. In 2010, Ami reached out to apologize for the distance she had created between them and to acknowledge the effort and love her father had put into their relationship. Years later, her father offered an apology of his own.

When he became ill, Ami and her siblings found themselves navigating the uncertainty of his cancer diagnosis while her dad remained determined to live. Conversations about death were difficult, but Proof of Life eventually gave the family another way to talk, laugh, remember, and connect.

Ami also shares what it was like to be with her dad when he died, the playlist he created for his own funeral, the waves of grief that followed, and the unexpected ways music, memories, humor, and even dancing have helped her stay connected to him.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Two powerful apologies between Ami and her father
• Making Proof of Life while her dad was dying
• Using a game to open conversations that were otherwise difficult to have
• Being with her dad in the final days and at the moment of his death
• The playlist her dad created and the role music played in his final days
• The waves of grief that followed his death
• Finding room for joy, silliness, and fun in the midst of grief
• Staying curious about the people we love — even when we've known them our whole lives

Ami Baio is the creator of Pink Tiger Games, which makes conversational games designed to bring people together through curiosity, connection, humor, and reflection. Follow on IG - https://www.instagram.com/pinktigergames/?hl=en