Thanks and a Bit of Fry

Oh, wow. How do I even begin, y'all? I guess with that: wow. In the wake of yesterday's post, I can't even begin to tell you how much I love you all, and how very grateful I am to have such people - those whom I've met, and those whom I've never met - in my life. Your comments, your phone calls, your emails, and your hugs brought me to tears, and meant more to me than I can adequately express. I feel bolstered by your support, and incredibly thankful for your presence in my life. So before I go any further, let me say: thank you for being here, and for supporting me so immediately and so generously.

If there's a common thread I can glean from your comments, phone calls, and emails, it is this: I am not alone. We are not alone. And if the admittance of my problems - this confession to my corner of the internet - helps someone else feel less alone in their struggles, or less embarrassed to go get help, then THANK GOD. Something good has come of it.

When I got home last night, Preston showed me a blog post that had serendipitously popped up on his Google Reader yesterday. This blog, Letters of Note, posts "correspondence deserving of a wider audience," as they describe it. This particular post was submitted by a reader named Crystal who, during a bout of depression several years ago, had written to her hero, Stephen Fry, because she knew he had suffered from depression as well. He actually replied to her letter, and his reply is posted here. Not only is the letter charming and oh-so-very Stephen Fry (since, ahem, I know him personally...), but it also serves as validation that all of these problems that make us feel so very alone -he lists depression, anxiety, and listlessness- are very real, and in the end, universal.

I'll end with a quote from the lovely Mr. Fry's letter (thanks, Pres!):

"In the same way that one has to accept the weather, so one has to accept how one feels about life sometimes. 'Today's a crap day,' is a perfectly realistic approach. It's all about finding a kind of mental umbrella. 'Hey-ho, it's raining inside: it isn't my fault and there's nothing I can do about it, but sit it out. But the sun may well come out tomorrow and when it does, I shall take full advantage."

-Stephen Fry, letter to Crystal Nunn

If this little quote resonates with you at all, then I do hope you'll check out the original letter - it's beautiful. And not to belabor the point, but actually, YES, to belabor the point: Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. From the bottom of my heart: thank you.