Another attempted suicide.

Is there a limit to the amount of sadness a school can absorb? We had another attempted suicide last night. Thank God she didn't succeed. They found her in time and she is in the hospital right now, recuperating. The first two students succeeded. That makes three attempts in the past 1 1/2 months. It's unreal. Everybody is kind of freaking out, including me. I have always heard that these things come in threes. Dear God, let this be the last.

Comments

  1. NicoleDecember 3, 2010 at 3:04 PM

    My thoughts go to the young one.

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownDecember 3, 2010 at 3:10 PM

    So sorry to hear it, Sandra.

    There are probably a lot of factors at play: the time of year/holidays (families are often in a financial bind which can create a turbulent home life), it's the mid-point of the school year (often the most hopeless time as it seems like there will be no end), less sunlight this time of year which can screw with people's moods, and maybe even copycat behavior from the teens who are need of help, but aren't sure of how to get it (or maybe even what they need).

    All you can do as a teacher is talk to the students openly and honestly about suicide and the repercussions, and try to encourage them to share with an adult if things are getting bad. Isolation is the enemy.

    I'll be thinking about you and your school.

    EJ

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownDecember 4, 2010 at 7:44 AM

    I do hope so. No more!

    ReplyDelete
  4. klahanieDecember 4, 2010 at 3:37 PM

    Dear Sandra,
    Reading this saddens me to think of the turmoil and despair that could make a child take their own precious life.
    In peace, Gary.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Randy4jesusDecember 5, 2010 at 6:12 PM

    Our Pastors will add the Kern Valley to our weekly prayer requests. What you are describing is "spiritual warfare." We must pray that God would be glorified and that the forces of darkness be overcome.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

108. San Francisco After a vast, lifeless desert I find myself sitting in a green park in Washington Square Listening to an Italian accordion A friendly aging dog waddles past With a stiff labored gait I read some beat poetry Glorious in its required tired anti-establishment vibe Venerable Asians sit stretch Tai Chi A tour bus drives by I am desperately grateful to find an oasis in my pen After passing through the wasteland
Read more

Poetry Scams....Grrrr!

Image
I am sort of embarrassed. I almost got conned into one of those poetry publishing rackets where you buy their book and they accept any poem that comes their way. I barely even remember submitting my poem to an online poetry contest about 6 months ago. Yesterday, I got this letter saying that my poem had been moved to the semi-finals, and that I could be a winner. Then they went on to say that they liked my poem so much that they were going to include it in the next, "Famous Poets of the Heartland" anthology, and I could buy my very own copy. Thankfully, the warning sirens going off on my brain kicked in, especially when I noticed the "Famous Poets" motto: Where Happiness is Being Published! I also thought that the editor, a woman named Lavender Aurora, seemed a little too thrilled about my "talent." No legitimate editor I have ever submitted to has been that excited, even if they enjoyed and accepted my work. This screams: VANITY PUBLISHING loud and clear ...
Read more

Sure I'm trailer-trash- Do you have a problem with that?

Image
One of the hardest questions that has plagued my writing has simply been, "What do I write about?" I have often heard the advice, "Write about what you know." Well, when I started writing and really putting my mind to it, I was only twenty-one. Basically, all I knew was high school, college, and a few European countries I'd visited during college. I didn't have very much to say for myself. I made myself write anyway with some good results, but nothing really stellar. Starting this blog last year gave me an excellent lab to bounce my ideas off of readers. By far my most popular peices have been about the wacky situations I manage to get myself into. I'm not a stupid person, but sometimes....I do some very silly things. Anyway, I'm twenty-seven now and the past six years have helped me come up with some new ideas that I think will be very successful. My husband and I have been building our own home and living in a 30 foot trailer in my in-law's fr...
Read more