Robin Williams.

“You’re only given a little spark of madness, you mustn’t lost it.”

The news of Robin Williams’ death has hit me harder than any other celebrity death ever, I think. I’ve never been so devastated to hear about the death of someone I never met. It’s like the entire world has collectively lost their favourite uncle. 

To hear that he had been struggling with severe depression and the cause of death is a possible suicide is heartbreaking. To know that someone so beloved struggled so much, and so quietly is especially harrowing, to me.
In the words of YouTuber Jack Howard: “The name is immortal, the man was not.”

Hearing this news has hit home quite hard for me. I’ve been struggling with depression myself over the course of this last year and the end of 2013. This week (and oddly, yesterday in particular) have been especially low days. And though I’m not suicidal (far from it) I have been in the past. Knowing that someone else, ANYONE else is going through such horrific feelings is very distressing to me, as I’m sure it is to everyone reading this. 

I was thinking last night about all the other people who could have died last night, who would have been suffering with the same problems, dealing with the same conditions. That made me very sad, to think of all these people, suffering so quietly, and not being remembered. 

If anything comes from this, I hope that it is an increased awareness and understanding of mental illness. Because that’s what depression is; it is an illness. It is not something that can be switched off, or that the sufferer can ‘snap out of’. It is not attention seeking, it is not just having a sad moment. It is a dark, difficult and often dangerous state of mind that requires understanding and treatment, not stigma and prejudice. 

If anyone reading this is struggling, I truly hope that you feel better soon. Here are a few places you can go for help, if you or someone else you know needs it:

Samaritans Suicide Hotline (UK) : 08457 90 90 90
International Suicide Hotlines
Dealing With Depression

Robin, thank you for enriching so many peoples’ childhoods and for making so many people laugh, and thank you for teaching so many kids how to fly. Bangarang. 

“I used to think the worst thing in life was to end up all alone. It’s not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel all alone.”

– Robin Williams, 1951 – 2014. 

 

 

 

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My Life in Letters: N.

There seems no better time to talk about Neil Armstrong than the letter ‘N’ cropping up in things that have influenced my life.

Yesterday humankind lost one of the greatest pioneers for exploration and adventure ever to live on our pale blue dot. He was what has been described as “a reluctant American hero” after his part as Commander on the Apollo 11 mission whose Apollo Eagle lunar module touched down on July 20th 1969. Neil Armstrong made history with one simple phrase, and his name will still be taught in hundreds of years to come as the first man to step on the moon. Not many people die with that kind of influence.

I grew up dreaming of one day travelling into space, experiencing zero gravity, and stepping onto the moon for myself. Neil Armstrong was a symbol of awe, envy and admiration for me; he had done what I always wished I could.

I could gush on about his achievements and his influence all day, but I think the statement released from his family says it best; “For those who may ask what they can do to honour Neil, we have a simple request. Honour his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink.”

Time In Space: 8 days, 14 hours, 12 minutes and 31 seconds.

RIP Neil. Godspeed.

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