Suicide can happen to anyone, and it causes unbearable pain to everyone.
Problems
Suicide
A turn of events
There's a story behind this beat up picture on the left, and it's one I hope you can get something out of.
I had a day when I thought things were just going wrong. School was stressing me out, and many things were in the back of my mind. We all have those bad days every once in a while.
I was sitting in a parking lot waiting to meet someone for lunch. As I waited in my car, something compelled me to draw. There was a notebook staring back at me in the passenger seat, so I decided to draw a picture expressing the bad day I thought I was having. I never finished the drawing. In fact, after a minute, I just tore it out and stuck it in my pocket without a thought.
I went about my day and had lunch. Little did I know that while I was eating lunch, or maybe even while I was drawing that picture, someone was thinking about killing them self.
I came home a while later to learn that my young neighbor, a high school student, committed suicide. As I walked across the street to offer my condolences, not knowing what to do, I put my hands in my pocket. Rediscovering the picture I drew earlier in the day, I couldn't help but think how narrow-minded I could have been for thinking that I was the only person with a rain cloud over my head—my bad day just didn't match up to the current situation.
Hard to imagine
Suicide is definitely a subject people shy away from talking about because it is both uncomfortable and unimaginable—but it is real. According to safeyouth.org, suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death among teenagers, killing nearly 2,000 teens each year!
I remember knowing of two students who committed suicide when I was in high school. It was not discussed that these were suicides, but word got around. I remember their moments of silence over the p.a. because these deaths were during the school year. I was sitting at my desk thinking how I would not be able to imagine what their family and friends are going through or how someone could do that.
After experiencing the loss of someone to suicide, I can get a glimpse of what that feeling is like; but it is just a glimpse, because I can't say that I'll ever know what their family and friends are going through. There is no “classification”, if you will, on who would commit suicide—it can happen to anyone.
Is it a common thought?
I conducted a survey of high school students to get an idea if suicidal thoughts are common, and the results may surprise you.
Out of 53 students:
- 34% of students said they have had a suicidal thought
- 66% of students said they have known of someone who has had a suicidal thought
If that doesn't scream “educate suicide prevention,” I don't know what will.
Don't lose focus
Suicide is deeply heartbreaking because it leaves so many questions unanswered, and it may not be until after the actual suicide when the warning signs start becoming visible.
I carried my drawing with me for a long time after that incident, and I would look at it whenever I thought I was having a bad day. Life is a great ride, and everyone knows this deep down; but the difficult obstacles along the way may quickly blindside us from this thought.
Don't wait for a death to be the reason for opening your eyes on the appreciation of life. Know it all the time, and keep that thought with you everywhere you go.
