So many things I could type. America has failed many like Sadie. But Sadie must rise up and take the bull by the horns and create her path, no one else will do it for her.
I think Mac is right, the world doesn't care. However, you would hope for some caring help and guidance for Sadie. Not many succeed entirely of their own devices.
In Woke Racism, McWhorter suggests three things to improve life in this country, one of them is to increase support for “vocational training for poor people and battle the idea that “real” people go to college.” I was going down that road until I went back to college and got a graduate degree at age 50. It’s the luck of the draw.
I wish better for Sadie’s in our country, yet while I can imaginatively enter her world, I am as remote from a good idea of helping as she is from optimism.
"She’s accustomed to a solitary existence, a lonely lifestyle meant to hide her brokenness from everyone. Too much of her time is spent on Facebook and Twitter. All social media has ever done for her is show what she lacks, but she’s been unable to give it up. It’s her only portal to the outside world. She yearns wholeheartedly for something beyond the confines of her surroundings, trapped by circumstances beyond her control, the existence she has spoiled by the one she doesn’t."
Ouch. Felt that one right in the last decade I lost to depression. The power of the Internet to aid dissociation is unequaled by anything else. No wonder there's a mental health epidemic.
The first thing that comes to me as I read this is tele-counseling. Mental health counseling for people like Sadie should be free. It would be a light in her life once she found someone she connected with. I live in a mostly rural state and see the decline of small towns. Big ag, and to a lesser extent mechanization of ag, has led to decline in the rural economy in many areas, and I’m not sure what could replace it. Industry in these rural areas is difficult because the number of potential employee is so low. Sadie could invest in some online education that might lead her to decent jobs elsewhere. But her mental health comes first. There are no easy answers, but it will take real investment in rural areas.
Damn, Brad, I just read 10 minutes of pain and anguish.
That's good writing, man. You're speaking the truth.
So many things I could type. America has failed many like Sadie. But Sadie must rise up and take the bull by the horns and create her path, no one else will do it for her.
Life ain't easy and the world doesn't care.
Great writing--I could feel her angst.
Recognize your smallness without being diminished by it. Whatever a beautiful thought.
There is hope in her walk and the oxygenation of her brain. When all else fails, take one more step.
I think Mac is right, the world doesn't care. However, you would hope for some caring help and guidance for Sadie. Not many succeed entirely of their own devices.
In Woke Racism, McWhorter suggests three things to improve life in this country, one of them is to increase support for “vocational training for poor people and battle the idea that “real” people go to college.” I was going down that road until I went back to college and got a graduate degree at age 50. It’s the luck of the draw.
I wish better for Sadie’s in our country, yet while I can imaginatively enter her world, I am as remote from a good idea of helping as she is from optimism.
"She’s accustomed to a solitary existence, a lonely lifestyle meant to hide her brokenness from everyone. Too much of her time is spent on Facebook and Twitter. All social media has ever done for her is show what she lacks, but she’s been unable to give it up. It’s her only portal to the outside world. She yearns wholeheartedly for something beyond the confines of her surroundings, trapped by circumstances beyond her control, the existence she has spoiled by the one she doesn’t."
Ouch. Felt that one right in the last decade I lost to depression. The power of the Internet to aid dissociation is unequaled by anything else. No wonder there's a mental health epidemic.
I really love your stories, reading truly is a window into others stories. Your word choices are brilliant descriptors. A most talented writer!
The first thing that comes to me as I read this is tele-counseling. Mental health counseling for people like Sadie should be free. It would be a light in her life once she found someone she connected with. I live in a mostly rural state and see the decline of small towns. Big ag, and to a lesser extent mechanization of ag, has led to decline in the rural economy in many areas, and I’m not sure what could replace it. Industry in these rural areas is difficult because the number of potential employee is so low. Sadie could invest in some online education that might lead her to decent jobs elsewhere. But her mental health comes first. There are no easy answers, but it will take real investment in rural areas.
"… a state of such crippling depression that she often struggles to find the volition to keep breathing, isolated by a pain none can see or share."
Nailed it!
🚨🚨🚨https://open.substack.com/pub/sagehana/p/dear-substack-readers-and-writers?r=ykqw5&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post