Putting a price tag on a life

Seems odd, doesn’t it? So, why is it that some people seem to think it’s alright to value one civilian child’s life against that of another, based on beliefs they’ve been fed by the media and not bothered to look into any further? Apropos of nothing.

Look at this frog in the photo. The poor sod invaded my home and, with no way out once the window was closed, was robbed of his life under a cardboard box stuffed under a bed in a room bereft of magic happenings. His near-fossilised corpse was not uncovered until a plague of bird lice (or similar, one assumes, as one is no entomologist) descended upon said bedroom (finally, some magick, albeit rather black). Did the frog really deserve being sentenced to such a bleak and merciless death, merely because he didn’t know any better than to jump through a cellar window in his desperate search for shelter from a storm? Or maybe he was hiding from his wife, I don’t know. Husbands seem to think that my house is particularly good for that. Was. I have since escaped my Fritzl-esque abode.

Apologies, yet another bee seems to have gotten itself trapped under my bonnet today. Where was I? Oh, denigrating the lives of strangers.

As I mentioned in last week’s post, World Mental Health Day is coming up and I haven’t really gotten my frustrations out of my system yet. (As if that’s ever going to happen – let’s be honest). Or, rather, I didn’t feel as if I got my point across as clearly as I’d envisioned. Now, I am not dismissing the importance of these events – without them I’m sure some people would be utterly oblivious to how much our mental health impacts our daily lives. What’s missing, though, is that it’s an aspect of our overall health, because some people seem to think that matters of the mind have been assigned its very own little branch.

Perhaps due to the minute state of their own mind, they haven’t the cognitive ability to comprehend such afflictions.

Either way, I’m not saying we should introduce World Meniscal Tear Day or International Sciatica Month (although, it would be nice if someone donated a few fistfuls of dollars to whomever is in charge of the research on how to fix those), but mental health issues really needn’t stigmatised further.

Let’s keep in mind that our health fluctuates. Some aliments are chronic, others acute, most are temporary. In most cases, life goes on. It’s not all suicides, extreme paranoia and drowning in an abyss you can’t seem to peel yourself away from. Sometimes you can remove a bit of the patella, rather than chopping the leg off altogether. There are good days as well as bad ones.

What’s more, there’s no such thing as perpetual happiness. Does that mean the opposite is true, that there’s no such thing as perpetual despair? Personally, I don’t think you could have one without the other. Of course, it’s not ideal when you only experience the extremes of either, but I think there’s something to be said for embracing all colours of the spectrum. Sort of an emotional barometer, if you will.

I’m getting away from myself again, but you get it. Let’s say someone you care about is in hospice. You wouldn’t expect them to sit there and wallow in their oftentimes excruciating pain – you’d allow them to have a laugh or crack a smile when something funny happened, wouldn’t you? You wouldn’t take that as a sign that they’ve miraculously recovered, all of a sudden. Yet, if you saw someone you know with chronic depression doing the very same thing – daring to take pleasure in something so banal as a quote from, say, their favourite Leslie Nielsen movie, society/popular culture/random fantasists has taught you to suspect they’ve been faking it all along. Therein lies the stigma.

Bit of a rant today, I must admit. So, to wrap things up a bit (and maybe trying to find our way back to what drew you in in the first place), let’s get back to that price tag. What determines the value of an individual? Surely it’s their inherent qualities and not external factors beyond their control? Or, indeed, the internal factors over which they hold no power? Why do we seem to think that we are right to make any sort of assumption about a stranger’s value at all when we know nothing about them? If we’re all going to walk around pointing fingers, then what’s the point of the judicial system?

I know, a bit far-fetched towards the end there. I’m not trying to teach anyone a lesson here, I’m just airing my frustrations over our collective existence’s great injustices. I bet the wrong person reads this and ends up using it as an example of why we need to shut people like her up. Och, well. As you can clearly see, I, too, am guilty of passing judgement left and right, using other people’s past and future judgement of myself as an excuse. I reckon we can all do better.

A Roman Emperor once said that you should first turn your gaze inwards before passing judgement on another. Carl Jung famously said: “Thinking is a difficult art, therefore most people prefer to pass judgements.” John Fogerty said it better; “Before you accuse me, take a look at yourself“.

See you next Tuesday. Until then, why don’t you check out this brand spanking new EP linked below? You might know the singer.

22nd Sep 2026 1

Would it kill you to educate yourself?

… instead of telling others what to do or think, that is? The content of this post might seem upsetting to certain readers. If you or someone you know struggle with suicidal ideation, or if you’ve lost someone to suicide, reader discretion is advised. If you’re in the UK, you can find one or more of the following links useful: Suicide Prevention UK, Men’s Minds Matter or Find a Helpline (this last one lists most, if not all, of the helplines in the UK).

If you’re in Norway, however, they’ve still got their heads buried so deep in the sand trying to pretend that everything’s fine, that there’s no helpline with competent professionals handling the phones. No one to reach out to, who won’t first inform you that they will have to let the authorities know if they suspect you’re at risk of endangering yourself or those around you. No one who will just sit and listen while you empty your head of those toxic thoughts that never seem to stop, without telling you how sad your pain is making them feel. Thus, no links, as I don’t think they’d be helpful.

If you’re lucky, though, there are some beyond decent GPs in this country, who can and will help if prompted. So, if you feel as if you’re not being taken seriously – and can handle the required research to find the right GP – it might be worth looking into a swap.

This past Thursday, the 10th, marked yet another World Suicide Prevention Day. You can read more about it on the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP)’s website by clicking on that link, but if you don’t know why there’s a whole day dedicated to prevent people from diving head-first into the abyss – this advocacy and communication event was established in 2003, in conjunction with WHO, to make the world understand that suicide can be prevented. Here’s a thought; why don’t you use that day to educate yourselves on mental health matters, rather than telling everyone else to “check on their mentally challenged friend and/or relative” on the one day of the year they might actually want to be left the fuck alone?

I’ve written about this topic on numerous occasions – hell, you can even read about it in my book – but, unfortunately, it seems to stay relevant. Thus, here we are again. I am writing about it today for two reasons:

1: What I saw on social media on the day made me want to vomit. Moreover, it made me feel sick to my stomach with shame and even more alienated than I normally do.

2: World Mental Health Day is coming up in less than a month, so I’ll do my part to impart some of my wisdom (take that with a pinch of turmeric and maybe demote it to life experience) and see if it helps.

Let’s get to it, shall we?

First and foremost, telling people to check on their friend on the one day of the year when the company you follow on social media tells you to does not make you a good person. Nor does it help raise awareness, because you haven’t educated yourself enough to know what you’re talking about. Had you had the decency (or, rather, awareness and empathy) to look up from your smartphone screen for even a second, you would have realised you could do more by just acknowledging those around you. I’m not saying you should smile at any random feck that falls into your path, but at least take your bag off of the seat next to you so that someone else can rest their weary bones or, indeed, choose whether they’d like to sit or not.

The above is applicable to every day of the year – not just the one. Just like with our physical health, our mental health is also perpetually there, in whatever state it may be. What’s more, the general public’s failure to acknowledge each other in the everyday can actually be the one think that breaks the camel’s will to go on, so to speak. But a nod, a ‘me before you’, a smile or a wave at a neighbour could also be an actual lifesaver for someone whose only thought is that they’re so worthless they might as well do the world one last favour and shuffle aff it.

I must admit, though, this post isn’t fuelled purely by John Lydon’s favourite form of energy, nor by my appallment of how some people use their Instagram account. No, I’ve been inspired by how a recently bereaved friend of mine has been able to truly live in the spirit of ‘what they would have wanted’ in reaction to their loss. Instead of withdrawing and wallowing in their grief, whilst taking their time to properly grieve, they are out there raising money for research and awareness for the cause by continuing their pal’s legacy – ultimately showing the rest of us how we can help prevent more loss and that there is still a life to be lived after death.

If you are able to help, please head over to this JustGiving page where they are raising funds for FACE (Fighting Against Cancer in Edinburgh).

That’s all for today. I shall see you next Tuesday. Until then, do something nice for yourself. Maybe that’ll give you enough energy so that you’ll do something that makes someone else choose to go on, without it feeling like you actually had to make an effort.

Also, here’s a tune that’ll pull at your heartstrings and make you think – whether you know the whole story or not. Then again, who really ever does? The truth is subjective.

15th Sep 2026 1

Running in the void

Drammenselva og Aass Bryggeri i måneskinn

Ever feel as if you’re going 200 miles per minute without moving an inch? Completely untethered, yet somehow confined by some invisible force that makes any type of forward movement impossible? You’re desperate to move, but void of course – any attempt at starting something new seems to fizzle out almost before you’ve even begun… Turns out there’s a word for that; Kenodromia¹.

The Greek term [Kenodromia] is used in astrology, as a name for the period “when the moon is passing through a ‘void’ region in the zodiac” (as defined by Porphyry of Tyre in Introduction to the Apotelesmatika of Ptolemy), meaning, in a sense, that any activities, planning or manifestations executed within the specific time period that falls on this region will be futile. There’s more on the meaning of a ‘void of course moon’ on Jupiter’s Realm, if this is your cup of tea.

Now, regardless of your views on astrology, I think just about anybody would be able to relate to the feeling of utter hopelessness that labouring with futility beckons. And hopelessness is certainly something most of us would like to avoid feeling. Hope is what gets us through when everything has turned to shit and there’s no guarantee things will get better. What is the meaning of anything, if we don’t have hope for the future?

Last Friday saw the marking of World Mental Health Day, a day with an objective to raise awareness of mental health issues around the world. A tremendously important day for too many reasons to mention, made even more significant for me this year, as this was the day that Jess from The Next Chapter chose to share her review of my book. I love how The Next Chapter keep their content fresh and unique – they’re a go-to for anyone looking to find new authors, books with interesting hooks, or even the locations of the most magical little bookshops. You can check out what they had to say about my book on Instagram by clicking anywhere on this sentence.

For those of you who have read Journey to the Centre of the Mind…, you will know that the the story’s protagonist is faced with the choice between giving up completely or accepting and dealing with the detrimental effects of untreated mental illness. Needless to say, I am all about raising awareness and spreading the word. I am truly honoured that they posted about my book on such a special day. What’s more, it gave me hope. Hope that the story can keep finding readers who need it. The hope that others will find hope for themselves or their loved ones by reading the story. The hope that we will one day be able to remove any stigma or misconceptions. The hope that governments will start allocating the funding required for the medical treatment and ongoing research of mental health issues and illnesses. And that’s why I thought I’d look at the significance of hope today. After all, hope is the reason we’re all here.

The meaning of hope, according to Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary, is “to cherish a desire with anticipation”. Many renowned philosophers, such as Descartes, Hobbes, Leibniz and Spinoza, distinguish hope from wishful thinking in that hope can be likened to confidence – something that can function as a catalyst once you realise that something is you desire is attainable. The theoretical likelihood of failure can be equal to that of success, but being able to see what needs to be put in place gives you motivation enough to convince yourself that the positive outcome is achievable. Hope’s opposite is fear, which we all know can function as a sort of assurance of negativity. One breeds optimism while the latter breeds negativity (guess which one is easier to succumb to).

Brian Lawlor, Founding Director at GBHI at Trinity College Dublin, wrote in the post pandemic article What is Hope and Why Do We Need it? that hope is “a feeling and a mindset that you have to work at in order to achieve your goals, despite trying and extenuating circumstances”. It seems to me that hope is indeed something that we need, for both sustenance and growth – collectively and individually.

Unsurprisingly, it seems as if hope can beneficial to healing as well. In a 2019 article on Psychology Today, Polly Campbell writes that “research indicates that hope can help us manage stress and anxiety and cope with adversity”.

Hope isn’t just a feeling or ‘wishful thinking’. Rather, it is the ability to see beyond the horizon. It’s not about trying to be optimistic where we should be realistic, it is about knowing success is possible and taking an active role in achieving it by figuring out the steps. It is about keeping your calm and trusting the process, even on those days where it feels as if we’re completely stuck and nothing works the way that it should. It’s like realising you will have to abandon pole position in a race to refuel when your car is running on fumes if you want any real chance at making it through the last few laps at all – when there’s gas in the tank, there’s still hope.

Maybe this feeling of running in the void is the universe telling us we need to take a break. Who knows? All I know is that hope is powerful.

See you next Tuesday, no doubt for some more blatant self-promotion.

Kenodromia is also the name of a band. You’ll find out what they sound like when you click on this sentence. ↩︎

14th Oct 2025 0