It’s suicide prevention day. A day that meant nothing to me until my brother took his life last year.

28. A man with a loving family who lived his passion as a chef at one of WA’s finest. He bought a house, travelled the world and was in a relationship. Good looking, cheeky and intelligent. Don’t judge a book by its cover. I looked up to my brother, I thought he had it all. He was ‘way more on track than me’.

Things aren’t always as they seem. I mean, he had ‘bad’ days, but so did I.

Pressure, stress, anxiety, pain and insecurity manifest in different ways. Don’t be fooled (especially on social media). You can be guaranteed that EVERYONE has shit going on! It’s kinda the point... to learn, to grow. But sometimes it’s ... a lot. It’s overwhelming. I mean, wtf goes on most days...

We don’t have to do it alone.

Share life. Share your problems, your solutions, ideas, feelings, thoughts, art, love and anger. Share it all. It’s how we connect. We are born relatable. Don’t be afraid to speak your truth..... people will understand, someone will understand.

Find a community, any community that supports you in a positive way. A community beyond your family, beyond your significant other. Find a friend. One REAL friend who’s *good for you! 

If I could go back in time, I’d tell my brother two things: fuck it all - just have fun and I love you.

Living present isn’t ignorant, it’s honest.

We don’t need to know it all. We don’t need to fix anyone or anything! We just need to be understood, loved, accepted.

Everyday we live, is enough.

Good job. We’re human. It’s our job to be human. So even if you do absolutely nothing ‘important’, ‘special’, ‘intelligent’ ... you have survived another day. I tell myself this, everyday. Every time I am overwhelmed, I congratulate myself on a life being LIVED. Despite this fuqing mess, I am alive, I am alright, I’m finding my way. And tomorrow, I’ll keep trying. I know my options....... even the dire ones. And this, this is still better than that.

Don’t stop checking in with yourself, your mates and your family. And when you feel it’s annoying, uncomfortable and irritable pursue it harder. There is nothing more sacred than a human life - yours, his, hers, them. Us. Trust me.... don’t wait to give more love, time and energy.

And there’s no order, not really. It’s not the ‘I’ first, it’s the ‘WE’.