Mickey Z
Cool Observer
Saturday, August 05, 2006
Suicide solution?
A very somber Storytelling Saturday...
(Suicide is the eighth leading cause of death for all U.S. men. Males are four times more likely to die from suicide than females.)
A cousin of mine killed himself this week. He was about a year younger than me. We were very close as kids but not so much as adults. Still, whenever we did hang out at a wedding or family party, it was always great to see each other and re-live old times.
He had a tough life: abusive father, one of six kids (five sisters, btw), substance and alcohol abuse, some jail time, and a really bad car accident that nearly killed him. He did settle down a bit, got married, had a little girl (she’s nearly 11 now)...but he was in the middle of a very messy divorce when I guess he decided he’d had enough. A tall tree, a strong rope, and a handful of suicide notes later...he was gone. My cousin no longer lives on this planet...but yet the subways are still jammed, bars and restaurants remain full, blogs get updated, Jane still does the laundry every Wednesday, and Joe never misses “Sportscenter.” Yes, of course life (so-called) goes on with or without us.
I keep finding myself thinking this: At some point this past week, I was probably walking around my neighborhood feeling sorry for myself in this heat or maybe contemplating the big trade the Yankees just made. Meanwhile, at that precise moment, my cousin was out in the woods of Pennsylvania...with a rope around his neck. Makes me wonder what’s happening somewhere (perhaps to someone I know and love) just as I am typing this.
It’s enough to make you insane.
Moral of this story (and every story?): There are no happy endings.
I’d love to hear your thoughts...
Copyright © 2005-2007 Mickey Z.
