Touched by an Angel, slapped by a Demon

[The Straight Story]

While I have spoken before, a lot, on the death of my mom on 12/31/2004 there is another death which yells out to me.

My X wife on 7/4/2005.

But this is not a post about me, or how I feel about it all.

My 3 sons, and their half sister, lost someone near and dear to them. And it affected them in profound ways. My youngest has tried to kill himself, cut himself at times. My middle son seems lost at times, and my oldest is looking for something in the army - some way to take out his pain I think.

One thing they have lacked over the years has been access to psychological services. They were not in contact with me for many years (thanks to their mom) but are now and we get along quite well.

But for years they sat without any care, unless they (like my youngest) did something like try to harm themselves. No one would listen or help - until some act or other was done.

They were often touched by the memory of their mother, but slapped down and tossed aside when they needed help to deal with their loss.

My oldest son is in the army, shipping out in Sept for Iraq, and NOW that he is in the army he can get mental health care if he needs it. Before that? Who cared?

When I was a data center manager and major issues came up we spent a lot time researching root causes so as to prevent future issues.

Why are we not doing the same now for people in general? Why do we spend a ton of money on killing others or finding better ways to do so and yet we do nothing to help solve problems here at home people face (from financial problems to mental ones)?

Are we serious about saving lives here and relieving suffering for one another? If so why are we spending so much on wars a world away and not putting that money into health care here? Not just seeing a Dr. for tests but getting mental health care as well.

Somewhere a demon whispers into the ears of folks "build more weapons, kill more people, war will save you" and sadly somewhere here some folks listen to it. "We will protect you" from a threat that does not exist - and the threats that do exist? Well you are on your own.

The enemy that threatens us the most is not thousands of miles away, it is here. But I guess there is no profit in fighting it, and no oil to gain.

[rrneck]

1. Yep.

All the best to your oldest, come home safe.

[pinboy3niner]

2. We stigmatize the "mentally ill." yet most of us have mental health issues

My condolences on the loss of your wife, and the challenges you and your family face.

We really need to de-stigmatize mental health issues and ensure routine psychiatric and/or psychological care for all of us.

Of course, I could just be talkin' crazy here . . . :)