Today's Inspirational “MYTHOLOGICAL MAGIC”
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Last week, such a story caught my attention on the local 6'clock news. I was actually deep in the middle of a writing assignment, when my subconscious was shaken back to the present when I heard a local newscaster mention something about a missing firefighter. My eyes left the glare of the computer screen to look upon the image projected on the large TV screen in our living room. My jaw dropped the second my brain processed the ethereal beauty that appeared in high definition before my very eyes. Tall, blond, with a smile that was meant to offer solace through others sufferings, she was absolutely radiant. I actually had to rewind the segment to digest the story behind this beauty. She was a 31 year old local firefighter in Virginia who had been missing for two weeks. My heart sank as I am fully aware of the statistics of persons who go missing for that period of time. I prayed for her and her family that evening. That they would receive some closure to her whereabouts, and soon.
The next morning, it was reported that her body was found, nearly a mile from her abandoned car, as an apparent suicide. Tears streamed down my face as I heard the known information surrounding this horrendous tragedy. Apparently, she had been badly bullied, much of it from the cyber sphere. She called in sick to work one day and was never seen again until her body was found weeks later.
I sat for about an hour, thinking about the potential life of this woman who had dedicated her life to one of ultimate service. And the family she left behind, offering them LOVE and LIGHT with my deepest prayers. May her SOUL know the eternal Joy and ONENESS of an eternal PEACE that this world did not obviously provide.
Later that night on the same station that originally broke the news of her passing, they hosted a 15 minute special segment on Mental Health. This is in no way an indictment of this young lady's state of mental well being. Regardless of the triggers, the tragic fact was that she took her own life. And the statistics behind suicide in this country are absolutely staggering. Did you know that suicide is the 7th leading cause of death in the US. AND, of the top ten leading causes, it is THE ONLY ONE that is rising. According to this segment, it rose over 24% in the last decade. STAGGERING!
Mental health has had a taboo like stigma attached to it for decades, and although its judgement has lessened over time, there is STILL way too much shame, fear, and alienation that needs our collective consciousness to awaken to allow those suffering to ask for and receive the help they need and DESERVE. It's interesting that our society is typically accepting of a myriad of physical ailments that befall most of us at one time or another. Cancer, diabetes, liver disease, heart problems, or in my case Crohn's disease being viable examples. We blink not an eye when we hear of others suffering from these various maladies. YET, too many of us still treat those with issues from chemicals in our brain as a modern day leper colony. AND IT HAS GOT TO STOP!
And I do know that of what I speak! I have suffered from depression during my life and on two occasions it has become nearly debilitating. And I am being VULNERABLE enough to share this fact with my fellow New Age Nerds because I hope that it inspires you to ask for help if you ever find yourself in a position of feeling incredibly BLUE, hopeless, filled with unbearable anxiety, or just plain not feeling like life is worth living anymore. In fact, it's the people who shared with me their COURAGE to ask for help with their mental pain that will always stand as my greatest and most inspirational HEROES. Before hearing their stories, I always felt ashamed to admit to anyone that I was suffering from a form of mental malady. Especially since I have been on a 20 year journey of self realization and many of my friends and family looked to me for sage advice and ‘magical’ musings to help calm their own stormy days and nights. Often, I felt like a fraud, as if my own battles with something I had ABSOLUTELY NO control over, made my sincere LOVE, care, and suggestive advice seem hypocritical in some way. But ya know what? The EXACT opposite has actually occurred. The more I have shared with others my pain, wounds, weaknesses, and sufferings, the more respect, admiration, and INSPIRATION has been born!! I am not saying it's always been easy, but I can say IT HAS BEEN WORTH IT!
To further prove my point do you know what ONE of the five characteristics of being a HERO actually is?!? Being WOUNDED.......Mythic scribe Antonio Del Drago says, “Every Hero has a wound. Like their villainous counterparts, all heroes are scarred in some significant way, either physically or emotionally." Perhaps the greatest way for us to truly complete our Hero's/Heroine's Journey is to face that wound, overcome it, and then share how we did it with others who are suffering in a similar manner! Whaddya think?!?!
So anybody who is reading this, and feels like they need help with their mental and emotional pain, please know that by having the COURAGE to reach out and ask for help, you will become a HERO to yourself and so many others who value you and all you have to offer the world. Please don't make a permanent decision on a situation that is temporary. YOU are truly ONE IN A MILLION..... You are here because the world needs you...... So please DO NOT be afraid to ask for help if you feel you are in a desperate situation and your own well being is at risk. You will be surprised how many people will be willing to shower you with unadorned support.......
Nerdmaste,
Jeffrey Louis Martinez
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