Content Warning: Suicide, mental health
One moment
You are leaving the hairdresser
A fresh do
The next
You are back
At the year 12 lockers
Did you do the
theatre homework?
No
You both laugh
You never do
We’ll just wing it
Are we seeing Jersey Boys
next week?
Yeah
You walk together
Enter the drama room
A safe space
A different world
A lifetime ago
Now
You are back
On the street
Unable to speak
The acting
Pretending
Masking
A much better reality
Than this bitter wind
And knowing you are gone
Jersey Boys next week?
Yeah
Done the homework?
No
Always no
And a laugh
Always a laugh
It drifts
From the lockers
Through the years
To me
Here
A fresh haircut
Feeling the icy wind
In a different way
I wrote this poem shortly after hearing the saddening and distressing news that someone from my high school had killed himself. His name was Mitch. I hadn't seen him for a long time but I remembered him fondly and felt his death deeply. Upon hearing that he had committed suicide, I had just come out of the hairdresser, a new haircut, a world away from his pain. I instantly remembered his big, bold, unapologetic laugh. It travelled through time, from our school lockers to me, standing on the footpath, a shorter fringe and the wind nearly knocking me over. Perhaps this poem was a way for me to express my own sadness and shock upon hearing about Mitch's departure from this world. But I also think it was a way for me to highlight his character. Always a laugh. I hope he's laughing wherever he is now. And the Theatre homework can wait. I hope he has found peace. Much love to Mitch, his close friends and family and anyone struggling with mental illness, this is for you.