Week 12

“If we accept that we have only a limited time in which to live, we can make the most of the time we do have by striving to live each day as fully as possible.” (Corey & Corey, 2008).  What a powerful statement.  It left my brain racing in about 30 different directions about all the things I want to do.  I want to float down the canals of Venice, reading a book and holding one of those silly umbrellas.  I want to get married and have children.  I want to go on an African safari and wear one of those hideous khaki suits and throw raw meat at tigers.  I want to travel to Greece.  I want to buy a home.  I want to dance with some sexy, sweaty man from another country in the streets (picture me and Brad Pitt from the scene in Mr. & Mrs. Smith). All in no particular order-- Is that too much to ask for?

Once I stopped daydreaming and continued reading the chapter, I very quickly went from excited and happy to nervous and sad.  I do not fear death.  My faith in God comforts me, and I know dying means joining him and all of my loved ones in Heaven.  Instead, it is how I will die that scares me.  Corey and Corey (2008)  state, “For many people it is not so much death itself they fear as the process of dying.”  I know it is not something I should dwell on, because ultimately, it is completely out of my control.  There are things along the way that are in my control, like telling loved ones how much they mean to me.  Every single time I hang up the phone, or leave a loved one, I always say “I love you.”  Not only that--but I make sure I hear them say it back.  

The last section on suicide was very important for me to read.  I do not understand suicide.  To me, suicide is the most selfish act of all.  As that person leaves behind their sadness or pain, they instead leave everyone who cared about them with just as much pain and sadness.  We hear stories of parents leaving behind their babies, children leaving their parents with a parent’s worst fear, and loved ones wondering what they could have done.  As a counselor, I will be aware of warning signs, and I will take them seriously.  I will not accept suicidal threat “jokes.”  Last year in class, I had a student joke that he wanted to kill himself.  I let him know that those jokes are not acceptable and I will always take those threats seriously.  I reported it to the counselor and called home to notify parents.  He was so upset with me, because he was kidding, but I cannot imagine how I would have felt had I not called home, and he wasn’t joking.

Corey, G. , & Corey, M.S. (2008). I never knew I had a choice: Explorations in personal growth (9th ed.). Belmont, California: Thompson Brooks/Cole. ISBN: 9780495602293.