I wish I could show you…the astonishing light of your own being. Hafiz
I am writing to you – my children and grandchildren – but also children and grandchildren everywhere.
Life is fragile and ends quickly and often capriciously. Two people we know and love have died by suicide recently. One, a young man in medical school with a life of healing before him. One, a boy just out of the high school who hadn’t begun to realize his own potential. Both deaths bring incredible sadness. I am sorry for their parents. I am sorry for their grandparents. I’m sorry for their siblings. I’m sorry for their friends. And I’m sorry for the world.
Also, I am human. Fear is nudging at my sorrow. At times like these I question whether you know that I love you no matter what.
So i want to talk with each of you and hear about your life. I want to extract a promise of communication because I don’t believe that the act of suicide begins in the moment of its completion. I want to know when you feel that first niggle of desperation. Although I see you through the clouded lens of love, I clearly know that you have problems as well as successes. There is nothing you could say that is too hard to hear. And isn’t everything easier with sharing and acceptance?
No matter how bad it seems in the dark of midnight, there is an upside. No matter how alone you feel, there is someone out there who wants you to live, who needs you to live, to whom you matter. Your life has a purpose and meaning which you will recognize in time.
You are loved. You are treasured. If you are feeling desperate or despondent please hang on until the feeling passes. Call or text someone in the family or call the number below.
xxoo
A Letter to my Children 