How ridiculous that sentence sounds. Because it's hard to believe that it actually happened, but also because I am surprised by how strongly I have reacted. In some ways I feel like I'm being overly dramatic, and that I should just get over myself - it's not as if I knew him personally. But I also know that my feelings exist for a reason.
I am what I call a "recovering" depressive who has contemplated suicide in the past. I am someone who has lived through the experience of someone close to me committing suicide. I am a huge fan of Williams' awesome talent. And, simply, I am a human being capable of empathy and compassion.
It baffles me that we live in such an advanced society and yet still know so little about depression and suicide. It scares me too, as I think that if someone as brilliant as Williams' couldn't cope, what chance do the rest of us have?
I guess we just have to remember that there are no guarantees in life. No one is immune to illness of any sort, and we can never know what life has in store for us. All we can do is keep fighting, take life day by day and remember that we're all in this together.
And on that note, allow me to share some of the good things I experienced this week:
Learning:
This week's Words of the Day:
- gimcrack - adjective - showy but flimsy and worthless. noun - a cheap showy ornament; a knick-knack.
- winkle-picker - noun - British informal - a shoe with a long pointed toe, popular in the 1950s.
- alpenglow - noun - the rosy light of the setting or rising sun seen on high mountains.
- defenestration - noun - the action of throwing (especially a person) out of a window.
- milksop - noun - a spiritless or ineffectual person.
Out and About:
- Sometimes you just need to look at cute cats
- Some very creative office hijinks: Desk Safari
- Models with body paint become nearly invisible set against New York city landmarks
- The classics as Seinfeld episodes
- Embroidery art by Kimika Hara
- I want to live, by Erika Moen
- Hitchhiking robot treks across Canada
- A punny sign
That's all for this week. Take care of yourself, and each other.
Sarah