Hurt people hurt people.         .         .

especially themselves

I don’t keep those statistics.           .           .

over thirty-six years I don’t know how many Celebrations of Life  I’ve conducted of those who have committed suicide.           .           .

Personally, I find only still-born or infant/children Celebrations of Life more difficult to do and

.         .         .to understand.

He literally kept his truck running as he pulled into a parking lot near a bridge and ran to it, full force, until reaching the middle and then without hesitation he hurled himself over the edge to the 200 foot plunge to a ravine below.

W    H    Y  ?

She had just had a long, but painful relationship come to an end.  She ran herself a bath, lined the tub with candles and framed pictures of them–dances, weddings, New Year’s Eve parties, vacations, the recently passed Christmas, kissing under a sprig of Mistletoe they both held above their heads.  A CD they had compiled was playing as she laid back in the warm water and slit her wrists and ankles.

W   H    Y  ?

She received a diagnosis of not just cancer, but cancer that has in fact, metastasized but decided not to let the disease take her life when she could control, the how, the when and the where. . .and did with some meds that she stockpiled and went to bed, to sleep forever one snowy night.

W    H    Y   ?

Straw      is      lighter      than      a      whisper      without      a      breeze

.     .     .unless it’s the last one.     .     .

the one that makes whatever load born now incredibly

u     n     b     e     a     r     a     b     l     e

Such a piece of hay was his

as he faced yet one more strand of straw with the news of possible incarceration

and he walked in front of an oncoming train.

W    H    Y  ?

The studies will tell you that 90% of the people are dealing with a mental illness at the time of their death.

In the end,

because there is the end, 

it really doesn’t matter if it’s because of depression or psychosis,

or an impulse,

or a crying out for help,

or a philosophical desire to die or because of terrible mistake made.        .       .

there’s an end;

I’ve just recently come across an idea I’d never heard or seen before

that spoke to me not so much in words, but

p      u      n      c      t      u      a      t      i      o      n.        .        .

It’s called:

THE    PUNCTUATION    PROJECT

and it’s purpose is the use the semicolon when a sentence could have ended

.       .       .but didn’t;

The movement is for anyone who has ever self-harmed

has a personality disorder

or has tried to kill themselves.

The semicolon is being used as a sign,

a symbol of hope.

It’s      s  h  o  u  t  i  n  g      out:

“YOUR     SENTENCE     IS     NOT     OVER     YET!”

The movement seems to be catching on because,

obviously it’s not just a Robin Williams-like celebrity that commits suicide;

Many are getting it  ‘inked’  on their wrists or other parts of their bodies.

;

I think it’s growing on me.      .      .

this semicolon symbol.      .      .

and if it just allows one.       .       .

j u s t   o n e  

person to keep their sentence moving,

well then.       .       .

Mother Theresa once said:

“THERE   IS   MORE   HUNGER   IN   THE   WORLD   FOR   LOVE   AND APPRECIATION    THAN    FOR    BREAD.”

Indeed.        .        .

the World is one hungry place.      .       .

but you have all the food necessary to feed one

or all carrying that one, single,

devastating    piece    of    straw.

It just may be a phone call,

whether one made to you or the one you share at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255

or share: suicidepreventionlifeline.org.

There   is   no   greater   sentence   in   anyone’s   book   more   powerful   than the   one   that’s   lived;

punctuated with exclamation points of

love,

acceptance,

compassion

and understanding—

all within your DNA.

H e a l e d    p e o p l e    h e a l e d    p e o p l e