Laura entered the room and I could immediately tell that something was wrong. She walked towards me, hugged me and said:
– Laura is gone. I don't want to admit it, but I knew it was only a matter of time. Very little time…
– Where did Laura go?
– Her mother said it was an accident, that she got too close to the window to water the plants and fell off the porch. A fatality.
Watering flowers? Laura? Never… Nobody accepts the truth. It hurts. All of this blends into jumbled scenes in my mind. We talked several times about how unloved she felt. We talked several times about our parents' absence, our fear and insecurity, and how people just can't seem to show that they care a little bit about us.
- would you jump?
- Perhaps. I thought about this possibility a few times. I think perfectionism – the same thing that is one of the causes of my illness – is the same thing that keeps me from jumping. I still haven't found the big act, the spectacular leap. I think that's why I haven't jumped yet. The guilt for the lack of love I don't feel bothers me. I'm tired of trying to prove my teenage daring. Nobody calls me! Nobody cares about me! I admit, a hug is good. I would like to show that I care too, that I care about the people I love. So many thorns between us. Olivia, when you welcome us to meetings, I don't understand… My thorns don't seem to hurt your body. You hold me and it doesn't hurt.
It was like that, with a pleading look, sincere tears coming from the bottom of her soul.
She asked.
She asked – not with words. "Please do not give up on me".
I could feel the pounding of his heart begging for care. Another wounded young woman looking to feel and know that she is not alone.
A human being who needs attention, real attention. Someone who just notices that he's there and notices that he has wounds that need to be medicated.
The courage to ask for help. Sarah had.
You might also like:
- Symptoms of Depression: Don't Ignore the Signs!
- 9 causes of depression
- 9 things you didn't know about depression
The above story is part of the collection of Writing Workshops and storytelling that I do. Laura, Sarah and Olivia are fictional characters, but they can easily be associated with someone we live with. These stories were created with the aim of supporting young people.
I feel responsible for the world I live in. I am part of the great web of life. I just can't sit idly by while I hear about the rising statistics on depression. I am part of the team that cares and makes a difference. If we adults are experiencing constant internal conflicts, trapped in our emotional dramas, imagine our young people without experience and without safe havens to seek refuge.
Since I have had access to various teachings, I have in my heart the desire to share this benefit.
Quoting Frei Betto: “They seem, but they have not disappeared. The sources are there, in plain sight: spirituality, social movements, the struggle for environmental preservation, the defense of human rights, the search for other possible worlds”.
In the next articles I will show some of the experience I have had with the topic of depression. I hope you can add, because the more we talk about depression, the more we can help.
I believe in a better world and I participate in its construction, after all I'm here for that!
