Every generation of youth goes through excruciating peer and social pressures. It is part of the human design to go through these trials that we may learn from them in order to benefit the rest of our lives. Teenagers bear the burden of their entire existence as they grow from youth into adulthood. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher is a must read for any teenager or adult wanting to get in touch with their compassionate side in order to invoke a change that can transform the world they live in.
I will admit right off that I have not read the book. I do a lot of writing but can't seem to sit down to read a book. I know - weird. Yet, I did recently see a high school production of this work by a Speech team in Shenandoah, Iowa. By the end of the performance there were many eyes in the audience teared up. It made a deep impression on all of us. Admittedly, I was also affected though I tried to uphold the "manly" state of emotional disconnect.
The main character is a female speaking through her thoughts left behind for her peers to receive. She committed suicide and included several peers as compounding reasons why she ended her life. Each interaction between her and various individuals played out, and showed not only the cruelty of how we can treat others, but how blind we can be to the emotional precipice many people walk.
I am 42 years old and many of the instances from my own teenage years still haunt me to this day. Listing the reasons proves fruitless in the end, but needless to say they did bring me to that brink of self destruction on more than one occasion. Those years for anyone are among the most tender. They are a cry of the heart and mind to realize one's own identity, character and potential. Obviously, the connections one makes with their peers and loved ones become paramount on the ladder of importance. It is when these connections become ill-fostered that one's self-esteem can become endangered.
It is felt important to list some of these ideas down while they are fresh. Though an intentionally somber production it was beneficial because it made the audience think and made us identify. The greatest affect of the performance for me came at the very end. All the interactions had been portrayed and the final thoughts of the heartbroken young lady had just completed. At the end, all the participants gazed at the victim of rumors, bullying and labeling. In a combined regretting tone they all simultaneously said, "I'm sorry." That was the capstone of the message. A plea from the living to the dead of actions of contrition as well as guilt of actions which should have taken place.
Sorry was too little too late. Though this was a stage production, it is a reality day in and day out for countless young men and women across the country and around the world. That one statement impresses into the soul a permanency of what happened to that young lady. It is a chain around the necks of all who contributed to her demise.
Though we don't end someone's life we are all accountable for the emotional welfare of everyone we come in contact with. It is a daily accounting of our personal integrity and uprightness as well as a gauging of our contribution to society and the world around us.
I am grateful for the many outstanding performances of the Speech team at the Shenandoah High School. In particular I am grateful for the work "Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher.
I will admit right off that I have not read the book. I do a lot of writing but can't seem to sit down to read a book. I know - weird. Yet, I did recently see a high school production of this work by a Speech team in Shenandoah, Iowa. By the end of the performance there were many eyes in the audience teared up. It made a deep impression on all of us. Admittedly, I was also affected though I tried to uphold the "manly" state of emotional disconnect.
The main character is a female speaking through her thoughts left behind for her peers to receive. She committed suicide and included several peers as compounding reasons why she ended her life. Each interaction between her and various individuals played out, and showed not only the cruelty of how we can treat others, but how blind we can be to the emotional precipice many people walk.
I am 42 years old and many of the instances from my own teenage years still haunt me to this day. Listing the reasons proves fruitless in the end, but needless to say they did bring me to that brink of self destruction on more than one occasion. Those years for anyone are among the most tender. They are a cry of the heart and mind to realize one's own identity, character and potential. Obviously, the connections one makes with their peers and loved ones become paramount on the ladder of importance. It is when these connections become ill-fostered that one's self-esteem can become endangered.
It is felt important to list some of these ideas down while they are fresh. Though an intentionally somber production it was beneficial because it made the audience think and made us identify. The greatest affect of the performance for me came at the very end. All the interactions had been portrayed and the final thoughts of the heartbroken young lady had just completed. At the end, all the participants gazed at the victim of rumors, bullying and labeling. In a combined regretting tone they all simultaneously said, "I'm sorry." That was the capstone of the message. A plea from the living to the dead of actions of contrition as well as guilt of actions which should have taken place.
Sorry was too little too late. Though this was a stage production, it is a reality day in and day out for countless young men and women across the country and around the world. That one statement impresses into the soul a permanency of what happened to that young lady. It is a chain around the necks of all who contributed to her demise.
Though we don't end someone's life we are all accountable for the emotional welfare of everyone we come in contact with. It is a daily accounting of our personal integrity and uprightness as well as a gauging of our contribution to society and the world around us.
I am grateful for the many outstanding performances of the Speech team at the Shenandoah High School. In particular I am grateful for the work "Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher.
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