Suicide: My View (Part 1)

   Yesterday a tragic story unfolded in what we now know as the courtyard of Lanier High School (not shown) during lunch. A student took his own life while many students looked on in horror. These students had no idea what they were in for when they left for school that morning. Nor will their lives ever be the same now that they have witnessed such a horrible event.
   Let me say this in before I go further. No matter what your age, situation, problem, gender, orientation, religion, color, ethnicity, or any other identifying factor. There are always people willing to help. Ending your life is not the answer. The lasting effects on people you leave behind are far greater than you can imagine. You may feel like you have no one, but believe me, everyone has someone. A family member, a friend, a co-worker, a neighbor. Even people you would never guess thought of you still think highly of you. So again, there is help. Please seek it out.
   First topic I want to tackle is on of the most common media covered ways that people commit suicide, by firearm. Now, anyone who knows me knows my thoughts on firearms. But I don't want to get into that discussion at this point. The avenue that I want to explore is the actual taking of ones own life by firearm. I have heard many people say, "it is the quickest way to go. BANG! done." Unfortunately, that is not the case. A while back I saw a Law Enforcement training video of a detective that did not properly pat down his suspect that he brought into the interrogation room. The man that was about to be interrogated pulled a handgun from his waistband when the detective left the room and shot himself in the head. Contrary to popular belief, it take a lot longer for the body to die even from a traumatic experience like that. As I watched, I saw his body convulse in what had to be excruciating pain before finally becoming completely still. Now I can't say I am any better off now that I have seen that. But it does give me a whole new perspective on the adage that suicide is "the easy way out". In this instance, and probably every instance, I do not see the decision being easy. There has to be some deep deep emotional hurt and pain to even consider this ultimate option. This pain leads me to my next point; mental health.
   Mental health in this time that we live in seems to either be a bigger issue than before, or we are just seeing the issue more because of the light that can be cast upon it through lightning fast media outlets like facebook and twitter. Whichever one it is, we have a problem. From what I see, the students of today have an insurmountable amount of pressure to both be unique yet fit into the status quo socially. With cyber-bullying becoming more rampant, the outcomes are becoming more and more disturbing as we learn more as to why these kids do what they do. Do we blame video games? The media? Parents? I don't see one direction that we can point our fingers. Maybe we need to begin with who Michael Jackson called "The man in the mirror".

    Please read part 2 of this blog post. It deals with a subject very close to my heart.