Before I knew it, everything was upside down.
If you haven’t checked out the most recent episode of The R4R Podcast… you need to! Watch it above or chuck it on Spotify by clicking here… Episode 6 is being released this Friday, so watch this space!
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The Darkest Day
It came out of nowhere… it happened three times… and before I knew it, everything was upside down.
I woke in a sweat, with the sun piercing through my curtains. It was 7am but the heat was already consuming the day. I used the early wake-up call to get my jobs done and by midday, I was headed for the beach.
It was packed… the busiest I’ve ever seen it… and after searching a good couple of minutes to find a spot on the sand, I found my way to the water.
It was beautiful.
The tide had made the sandbank so that we were waist deep for what felt like forever. Swathes of people were enjoying themselves… laughing, playing, relaxing… and in a moment that seemed to slow time down, a monstrous wave came out of nowhere.
It smashed people together, driving them into the sand, and just as people were gathering themselves, two more waves enveloped the beach, dragging hundreds of shocked swimmers out to sea.
It was chaos.
I rose to the surface gasping for air, looking around to gather my bearings… panic was everywhere. People desperately clinging to others, dragging them under water… life guards hauling people out of the surf and back to shore.
I saw a young boy struggling near me and swam toward him, grabbing him under the arms and pulling him towards the beach. He had taken on water and wasn’t breathing, but all the life guards were busy.
A young woman rushed over, yelling at me to do CPR… I did… and after three suspense-filled seconds, the boy coughed up the water filling his lungs… He was alive.
No Lives Lost
On the 6th of February 1938, three huge waves swept hundreds of swimmers into deep water at Bondi Beach. Some made it back to the shore themselves, more than 250 people had to be saved, 35 were resuscitated, but five swimmers had died.
Some of those saved were helped by regular beachgoers and surfers, but without more than 60 Surf Lifesavers fortuitously preparing for a competition at the beach that day, those figures would have been much worse.
Coincidences and a clue?
Three waves have hit me in life… my Dads suicide, my Mum’s cancer diagnosis, and my Mum’s death… the last of which was same date as that fateful day in Bondi, 83 years later.
Funnily enough, the slogan for Bondi Surf Lifesaving is “no lives lost”… a near mirror image of R4Rs belief that “no one is destined for suicide”, and I can’t help but read into the randomness for what might be a clue on how Canberra can be suicide-free.
If most people on the beach are good enough swimmers to save themselves and one other… If there’s a surplus of volunteer lifesavers as well as access to trained professionals… isn’t it possible that no lives can be lost on any given beach?
If most people can look after their own mental health and have the energy to support their friends and family… If we have enough people trained in mental health first aid and a well functioning community, professional, and emergency services sector…
Isn’t it possible that Canberra can be suicide-free?
It’s possible… it might not be that simple, but it’s possible…
… and if it’s possible… it’s bloody well worth pursuing.
It's not probable. But it is possible.