Merry Christmas Mark and to all who participate and lurk in these hallowed 'pages'... May we each bring smiles to our fellow man in the coming year rather than the opposing emotions...
Maybe it will be contagious and others will pass it on too!
Thank you Mark and the many many others whom provide countless patient replies to the new and old members when we forget what we may have been told before and forgotten and need a gentle reminder or a ____ slap to wake up our turkey addled minds from a traditional ( in large segments of the USA it is...) Holiday meals or the haze in our memories of the obvious or not so obvious .
Hope we all have an even better year if it were good and if it were ok or not so ok year or years past the wind would be to our backs helping propel us forward in positive directions.
And be understanding and sympathetic to those who lost someone dear in the past year by sometimes the most helpful thing you can do for someone is to be there, just be present with them, not asking questions or trying to cheer them up or force them to move on as grief and what is normal for one is not normal for another. Sometimes they need an ear that just listens, be there if they need that. Too often everyone gets busy with their lives and moves on and then the hard time comes and everyone has moved on. Sometimes people need to be left alone too, as always having someone ask you how you are doing gets exhausting and doesn't help you if you are the one who is going through and processing all the stages typical for someone grieving loss.
Just a PSA (Public Service Announcement)
Just to make a point to remind people in case you didn't realize/know. Many people who commit suicide around a holiday don't do it before or on a holiday, they do it after the holiday. You may never know whom was wearing a mask and projecting a positive face and hopeful face wishing inside it were to come true and trying to grasp onto hope, sometimes grasping in vain for a reason they should stick around. People often will be heard saying things like but he or she was so upbeat and positive and seemed genuinely happy. That can often be a very practiced externally facing mask they hide behind their internal pain or anguish or despair. It could be they are trying to leave those they know with a positive memory of them before they take their life. It is often after a holiday you will see people commit suicide.
Be a friend to your friends and people you know. Be sincere and thoughtful of what you say and how you say it. Don't jump to conclusions about someone. It is normal to have a difficult holiday where family or friends have a tradition of gathering. Just being somber due to your healthy grieving cycle isn't a cause for alarm.
Sorry didn't intend to write a tomb about suicides and the holidays and loss of those whom you are close with or someone you love/cared deeply about.
Hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas celebration (s) and have safe and happy holidays.
David
