I'm sure you've heard the expression "Put yourself in their shoes"
Have you ever done it?
I'm gonna tell you a little about how I see the world.
Through the eyes of someone with mental health problems.
A little back info:
I live in a small city in upstate ny.
If you've ever heard anything about upstate ny, you'll probably know where i am.
The news isn't great about my city and we're famous for our prison and mark twain.
Right now our economy is very bad and we're no longer in a recession but a renaissance.
We have a huge drug problem and not enough police to combat it.
I see the world as a scary place.
Children on the streets and needles in arms.
I have hope but very little.
I watch the news and worry about when my son will be an adult.
Just where the hell will the world be in 10 years?
Will it always be this scary place?
I see cars polluting the air we breath.
More trash on the streets than people.
Women who are silenced by fear.
And too many "Me Too" stories.
I wish to be a voice, but i'm unable to speak.
It's like a lump in my throat that i can't seem to swallow.
Like a poison slowly curdling my veins.
I stay quiet.
I stay quiet because the anxiety of raising my voice is enough to chill my bones.
I stay quiet because I think no one will listen.
I stay quiet because I was raised in a home where the mans word is law.
I STAYED QUIET.
Not today.
Today is my day, and your day.
So let us raise our voices and talk like the humans we are.
I don't want to be afraid forever.
"We're Better, Starts With We"
-Kristen Beardslee
Finally Living Again