I would like to expand on the topic of
suicide. In class I mentioned the comment that "is the reason we do
not commit suicide because we are happy or that we are more understanding and
open to the option of future happiness." I know for me i was unhappy for
years after losing my brother by suicide due to the overwhelming affects of his
PTSD. I was only 19 when i was told the news. In the immediate time frame
I had contemplated elevating my own pain. At the time I did not see any
happiness surrounding me. As bad as it sounds I did not see a reason for living
other then to not ruin anyone else's life. If it were not for the people around
me things would have been very different. After a few months i had became more
and more stable. The thoughts were still roaming through my head but i was no
longer contemplating further actions. It was roughly 3 years later before I stopped
thinking of it on a daily basis. I say all this to mention that it was not that
I had some form happiness but that I knew in the long run maybe happiness could
crumble the walls I build with pain around me.
Secondly, I do not think that some people can
control some of there thought or even their emotions. We all watched the inspirational
film of Robin Williams. In that film, or any other ones of his for that sake,
would anyone that wasn’t extremely close to him would have guessed that he
would have went down the road he did. He had even had talks with his wife and
other families about how at times he had happiness and that he couldn’t control
his thoughts.
So true: amidst all our talk about living in the present moment, we also have to make room for a happy future. Too many surrender to an overwhelming present because they can't find space in their imagination for something better. Easier said than done, of course, for those suffering PTSD or other afflictions... but easier, I imagine, for those who've pondered the problem. That's why I keep recommending Jennifer Hecht's "Stay"...
ReplyDelete“None of us can truly know what we mean to other people, and none of us can know what our future self will experience. History and philosophy ask us to remember these mysteries, to look around at friends, family, humanity, at the surprises life brings — the endless possibilities that living offers — and to persevere. There is love and insight to live for, bright moments to cherish, and even the possibility of happiness, and the chance of helping someone else through his or her own troubles. Know that people, through history and today, understand how much courage it takes to stay. Bear witness to the night side of being human and the bravery it entails, and wait for the sun. If we meditate on the record of human wisdom we may find there reason enough to persist and find our way back to happiness. The first step is to consider the arguments and evidence and choose to stay. After that, anything may happen. First, choose to stay.”
Delete― Jennifer Michael Hecht, Stay: A History of Suicide and the Philosophies Against It