I have been impacted in the past by people I’ve known who have committed suicide. On this first day of 2015, I saw a post on Facebook by a friend of mine. Jason just lost another of his friends to suicide. Life is so precious, even when you don’t know the person, hearing about someone else taking their own life is heart breaking. Jason has posted many times over the years urging friends to call, text, stop by his house, anything, just please reach out if they ever need to talk or feel the need to end their life. I don’t know if anyone has taken him up on it, but I know there are many of us that feel the same way as Jason. Please, reach out and the sooner the better. There can be hope, happiness and life can and does turn around for the better for people.
Jason’s recent post prompted this poem.
Reach For Help
Weakened heart brought down by life’s troubles
Chipping away at the mind
Emotions spiral, go silent, numb
Come back screaming, leaving you reeling
Ups and downs
A ship battered by life’s storms
Precious heart don’t despair to final end
Remember as a child, you’d chance it
Learning to swim
Or to ride a bike
Pushing just a little bit more
To find the side of the pool
Reaching out for helping hands
To catch you as you fell
Guiding you back to a safe place
Where balance could take hold
Those hands are there now
Reach out, give them a chance
A phone call, a visit
A cry for help
Your life is too precious to let go
You may not see it but others do
Give them a chance to show you
Give them a chance to know you
Grab that childlike hope and once again
Reach out and grab on to the side of the pool
We are here
Stephen Kellogg – 2015
There are other forms of help as well, please take the step now:
Stephen Kellogg
Stephen Kellogg's Blog 
So important, especially this time of the year
Thank you for sharing this.
Thanks for this post. It’s a good message to begin the writing year with.