BOOK. “Death in the Face” by Dr. Philippe Boxho: “Let’s enjoy life, rather than wondering about what’s next”

What is people’s first reaction when you say you are a forensic pathologist?

it varied depending on the era. At the beginning, they said to themselves “it’s not possible”, “he’s sick”, “he’s not normal”, “he has a problem”… But for 15/20 years, it’s different. People are happy to meet me; they start talking and often they tell me their stories, what bothered them when their loved ones died. Maybe it’s because I’m getting older. The people I meet today are my age, they have experienced things. Today, people tell me that what I do is great. Whereas before, people would change places when they ate in front of me.

Has your own relationship with death changed with your job?

No, he’s still the same. We know we are going to die; There’s no point in having a problem with death. I find it useless. Let’s be practical! Being shocked by death is just an escape. Either way, death is going to catch up with us, so we might as well accept it and move forward. Not accepting that you are going to die means having, all your life, a huge weight on your back in relation to something that is going to happen anyway.

For you, what is there after death?

Nothing, it’s like a switch that we turn off: day/night… We won’t suffer because we won’t know. These are existential questions, I agree. Lots of people are looking for answers. But the real existential question is: why is there something rather than nothing? We do not have the means to answer such a question. Let’s enjoy life instead of wondering about what’s next.

How do you explain the success of your books? Morbid curiosity?

This may be true for some readers, but it is not the majority. Because there is nothing morbid in my books. Or everything is morbid… It all depends on how you read them. When I ask people why they read me, they first answer that it’s because they find forensically true stories there. These are real crimes, real suicides. Then for the way I tell them. I am not a writer: I tell my stories as I tell them orally. Finally because they are short stories. You can stop reading it and resume it 3 months later without it being a problem.

What limits do you set for yourself in the stories you tell?

I have no limits, it’s natural: I don’t laugh at the dead, I laugh at death. I think it’s better to laugh about it. Those who want to cry about it, that’s their problem, if they like neuroleptics and antidepressants that much, especially if they go there, the industries will benefit from it! On the other hand, I refrain from talking about the disasters that I experienced in the Liège region, the autopsies of little girls killed by pedophiles, and the big stories that hit the population because they were in the press.

Do you still find yourself surprised during an autopsy?

Oh yes! I just had a guy who killed his wife. It is believed that he did it with a ballpoint pen, which penetrated the breast and touched the heart. The lady died. I had never seen that.

Are you going to write more books?

I promised myself I would do a maximum of 5. But there might not be a 5th. Because if I no longer find pleasure in it, I will stop first. What I wanted was to make my profession known. I was aiming for Belgium, not France! In Belgium, forensic doctors are completely neglected by the government. My hope is that the books raise awareness because we are just dying! There were 42 of us in 2000, there are 24 of us today. Half of whom are in training, without certainty that they will stay. Which makes 12 permanent… But there will be a 4th book, yes. In all my books, I include chapters that relate to history: the death of King Albert I, that of Christ, the guillotine, Napoleon… This time, I want to write a chapter on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel which is very special. I will show that there is a brain, painted by Michelangelo. And it’s not a joke! I also want to write about the Shroud of Turin which is a superb crime scene.