By kaka Lucas, 8/6/2021

Suicide! Yes, Suicide! It is not a fun word to say or an easy topic to address especially in our generation. But on the other hand, it is a burning topic all over the world, especially at this time of the pandemic. The rate of suicide is shooting high and higher not only among young people but also among adults, trust me it is going wild! No one wanted to talk about it, no one wants to say, no one is ready to see how they were feeling. But we need to talk about it, if we are struggling we need to talk to a friend, we need to reach out to train professionals and to trusted adults. Remember it is OK not to be OK. For those who order things online will it be a laptop, phone or anything of value I believe you have noted how old the package comes to you? If it’s a phone or a laptop the box will be written “handle with care”. This is done in bold and clear marks, on top of the box. This is to show that whatever is inside is special. Contemplating upon this I just thought what God was sending us to our mothers’ wombs, he may have written “handle with care”. Because we are special and we need a special gentle touch. What would happen if we all had a “ handle me with the care” sign that shows the world how fragile and important we are? When did we begin taking for granted the fragile nature of life and health? Last week we had an incident where a lady committed suicide on flat Bridge. It is shocking news, it was shocking that I did ask myself, what could have been the reason. She looked beautiful according to the picture, she seemed to be a middle-class lady with her car. What could have led her to commit suicide? What could have triggered that hopelessness that led to her taking her life? Just like me, many people who never knew the lady went ahead to speculate the reasons why she killed herself, others went on to social media theorizing that her charming appearance perhaps may have hidden the battle she fought according to (Jamaicaobserver)……. In life, many of us encounter people with big smiles, joyful laughter, kind hearts, good people to be around…..or just good people who mind rather business….but we really don’t know who they really are inside, we have no idea the battles they may be engaging in life. Each one of us is battling something either addiction, grieving or whatever it may be happening in our lives, we are all at war. As I was reflecting upon this incident this morning, I thought we all should handle each other with care. Handle me with care as you can handle a package in the mail, the box from Amazon or anything that is precious and you truly care for it. Be nice to people. We are all battling something. As I manoeuvre through this pandemic, on this hot summer. I am contemplating the moments I have taken a deep breath and calmed myself before saying something negative to someone especially when I’m angered or I’m in my own bad mood. This should not be the reason to say anything unkind to anyone. With this incident of this lady, I have promised myself, that I will look at each individual as a child of God, as a team of God, as an adult of God, and maybe a citizen of God. I am asking for the grace to treat each person with love and respect. Every time we want to be unkind or negative, this is the question I’ll be asking myself, “ are my thoughts and actions towards others positive on caring?” Although we may encounter differences with some people in our lives, all of them deserve respect and to be handled with care. Life is fragile. People are fragile, both mentally and physically. In this time especially with this pandemic, we are invited to treat each other a little bit gently. It’s time to treat each other with gentleness with which we handle our fragile package and see what a positive effect it has on each life. Each one of us matters no matter the position in life.