For most, the first week of November 2016 was absolutely insane and shocking. For me, the shock did not stop on November 9th. Sitting in my first-period class during announcements on the morning of the 10th, reading a book, was the first moment I learned of the suicidal death of my friend.
This person was one of the most incredible, kind people I have ever had the privilege of meeting. After being good friends for middle school and then drifting apart in high school, he and I had just started getting close again. His death stunned the entire school, and I was so dazed that I had to back out of two tests.
A month later, I read a book that I pretty much can say changed my life: "All The Bright Places" by Jennifer Niven. A story of love between a social outcast with deep secrets and a popular girl whose life has not been up to par lately, this book openly discusses the dangers of allowing mental illness to go untreated and speaks about suicide without a barrier.
This brings me to my point and the headline of this article: why can't we talk about the things that make us nervous?
Sure, war and mental illness and poverty and cancer and all the bad things of the world today have existed since the dawn of man, but we no longer live in a world of escape. This is not the 1930s; we cannot avoid the harsh topics of the world we live in simply because the world never leaves our heads. From social media to the streets and television, these issues are prevalent everywhere we look.
No, it is not fun to talk about things such as disease and hunger, but these problems are not going away right now. And they especially will not go away if we refuse to talk about them.
In the last few chapters of "All The Bright Places," Violet, the main character, finally breaks down to her protective parents, who have also been deeply affected by family trauma in the last year, and admits to them that she is sick of staying quiet.
And I agree with her. Speaking of those we have lost and tragedies we have experienced and will experience brings up pain we do not want, but isn't it better to get it off our chests than to keep it shelled up inside our souls?
Our world climate is drastically changing because of us. Thousands of people die every day because of war and hunger, while some people (yes, like myself) live almost carefree and adequately prepared for life. Heroin use is at one of its worst highs in American history. And texting while driving is still a huge killer.
So, no, it's still not fun or exciting to talk about the things that make us nervous. But, for those who have not noticed yet, the only problems that get fixed throughout history are the ones we are not silent about. This would possibly still be a segregated nation if Rosa Parks hadn't refused to stand up. Thousands more men would have parished in the second world war if Alan Turing hadn't solved Enigma.
Instead of remains silent and waiting for the world to change, why don't we change it ourselves? Why do we not all march with our brothers and sisters and protest the stupid choices of our political leaders? Why do we refuse to care about those in pain, until they are already gone?
Why can't we talk about what makes us nervous? Actually, forget talking. Scream. Loud and Proud.
As an extraordinary man once said, "our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter".
