Often lost in the shuffle of holiday shopping and parties, is conversation and focus on mental health, when it is actually the most critical time of year. Statistics show suicide rates to be consistently high during the Christmas and New Year’s season.
Frank Capra’s Christmas classic It’s A Wonderful Life was originally a flop in the box office, but I would argue the story of George Bailey, the loathsome Mr. Potter, and Clarence, Bailey’s guardian angel, is far more more germane to obtaining the Christmas Spirit than Dickens’ story of the old curmudgeon, Ebeneezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol.
Under the weight of financial ruin manufactured by Mr. Potter, and facing a warrant for his arrest, George Bailey suffers a crisis of the soul. Convinced everyone around him would be better off if he had never been born, Bailey seeks to end his own life.
It is at this point in the movie the viewer visits the heavenly realm, becoming privy to a conversation between Clarence and two of the upper angelic hierarchy. With prayers from Bedford Falls flooding in on behalf of Bailey, they offer Clarence a chance to earn his wings by restoring Bailey’s will to live.
Jumping at the chance, Clarence arrives on Earth in time to save Bailey from a suicide attempt in frigid waters.
As he dries off, Clarence tells him he is being “given a great gift… a chance to see what the world would be like without you.”
Disbelieving, Bailey makes his way home, only to find everyone he encounters in his small hometown of Bedford Falls doesn’t know who he is.
Now that Bailey believes, Clarence takes him through his life, showing him all the countless, small ways he changed the outcome for those he loved.
Two poignant moments stand out for me; finding his brother Harry Bailey died in an accident George saved him from, and when Bailey’s grief stricken employer, the pharmacist Mr. Gower, inadvertently puts poison in a prescription pill bottle. Bailey stopped him, at great personal cost, but now, he sees the outcome of the pharmacist’s mistake because he was never born to stop it from happening.
Ironically, Gower is himself grieving the loss of his son when the deadly mistake is made.
Clarence gently reminds Bailey, “Strange, isn’t it? Each man’s life touches so many other lives. When he isn’t around he leaves an awful hole, doesn’t he?”
It isn’t long before Bailey is desperate to return to his life and when he does, Clarence asks “You see, George, you’ve really had a wonderful life. Don’t you see what a mistake it would be to throw it away?”
In this fast paced world we live in, it is easy to miss signs in our loved ones, their subtle shift into a feeling of hopeless finality.
I rely on my faith when faced with dark times, but for those that don’t, and even if you do, I encourage you to check out the story of George Bailey.
No matter how dark a temporary problem may seem, a permanent solution is never the answer. Someone, somewhere will be devastated in a world without you.
My Uncle took his own life in 2021.
He had chronic illness like me and while I may understand his motivation I have so much lingering regret on his behalf.
If you are dealing with suicidal thoughts, or just struggling in general- reach out. Your life is of too much value to someone to throw away- be it your parents, spouse, or child. Or just to that person you haven’t met but who, because of your influence, is going to be made whole again.
None of us go through this life alone and I challenge you this Christmas season to check on those around you, really listen to their answers without judgement. Look for those cues only someone that truly loves them would see… because you never know when that last moment is really that, the last moment. After all, what better way is there to keep the Christmas Spirit alive year round than by being each other’s keeper?
I could not say it better than Clarence, “Remember, George, no man is a failure who has friends.”
The Suicide Hotline can be reached by calling or texting 988. Do not suffer alone.