post-resolution, pre-revolution

Hello all,
Hope you all had an amazing Christmas. Hope you all remembered what it should really be about. Our Lord, not our receipts. I will link a video down below this message, and I'd like you to take the time to watch it. It's got such an amazing message, you just won't believe till you see it.

See, depression is one of those things...people like to pretend that it doesn't exist. That it's not a real problem, that whoever claims they have it is just begging for attention, or trying to shift blame from themselves in a time of bad luck.

Then? Then someone we care about, or love, takes their own life. Then it becomes real all of a sudden. We're hypocrites. We need to separate ourselves from that notion here and now, because at that point - it's too late. I don't know, or want to (because it's not important) know how many peoples lives I've impacted, for the better, just by being there. For them, when they needed time to talk. To vent, let it out, and be heard. That really is all it takes.

It sounds simple. It's not. For the past 4 years I've struggled with depression, at one point - I nearly called it quits. Reaching out to people for help is hard. When I finally worked up the courage to talk to someone, someone who was supposed to be one of my best friends, they couldn't be bothered. Seriously people, you never know when the conversation your having with someone could be the last.

But finally someone listened. For the last 3 years I've been mad at that person - because she won't claim responsibility. I can't be too mad though, she says it was all God. The point is, she saved my life, by doing next to nothing. Next. To. Nothing. It takes hardly any effort to listen to someone. Be a friend. It's the least you can do, and the least you can do can change lives. Prolong lives. Save lives.

But here's my question. One person, out of all of my friends at that time, was willing to listen. My own mother wouldn't acknowledge that I had a problem. How can everyone else justify being a Christian. How can they justify themselves being a Human Being?! (Thankfully, I have better friends now a days)

Syd, who posts on this very blog, lost her uncle to suicide. That event nearly destroyed her life, and that was the most sobering experience of my life, seeing first hand what I could have done to my loved ones. What really gets me, is the people who are looking on from the sidelines saying "how could that affect her so much" and "she needs to get over it." Every time I heard someone say that, I began to question whether or not I could get away with murder.

That, my friends, is why I am so passionate about TWLOHA (To Write Love on Her Arms) - it's the single greatest program I can think of. Why? Because it gives hope to people who desperately need it. I have 433 friends on my facebook, and only 14 of them 'like' the twloha page. Now, I'm not saying your any less amazing for not liking it, and I'm not saying go join it out of guilt, but what I'm saying is - spread the word. There are people out there who care, and who will listen. People who support anyone, regardless of sex, race, religion, height, weight, etc.

If this was more widespread - I, right now, could be proud to say I never even considered taking my own life, and Sydnee's uncle could still be with her. Millions of people across the world would be waking up in the morning and heading off into their future.

We have to, right now, as a whole, unified human race, re-evaluate our position. I titled this post-resolution, pre-revolution, because we need to stop looking back on these devastating events and saying "oh, what a shame," and looking forward to see what we can do to prevent them. All it takes is listening. Ask yourself this, how can you say you love someone, and not listen to them? Cherish every day, life is shorter than anyone can ever know - so don't waste it. Remember that not taking chances means wasting your dreams. Go after what you want, don't just let it pass you by, and always, always, be a good friend. After all, as they say,

Love is a movement.



Peace, and God Bless