A Life Lost to Bureaucracy
I just read of a young medical student
at the University of Birmingham who took his own life after failing a resit
examination. By email, he was advised that he would have to exit the course.
What seemed like a simple
administrative activity delivered by email by the University of Birmingham was,
in fact, the end of the road for this young soul. He saw no other options left.
The Failure of Pastoral Care
It could not have been too difficult
to invite this young man into a student affairs office or a dean's office to
ascertain why he struggled to pass one resit examination when his other results
met the mark.
Having invested life and purpose in a
medical degree programme, surely, despite whatever rules were in place, no one,
especially in an academic environment, should be oblivious to the considerable
mental strain of effort not being rewarded with some recognition.
As per the narrative in the news, on
that alone, I would suggest the University of Birmingham has been remiss in a
core responsibility for student welfare that is quite unforgivable.
The Whisper of Despair
Then, whilst I cannot ascertain the
facts of what the triggers for suicide and death by misadventure could be, I
know there are times I have harboured suicidal thoughts.
I lived on the seventh floor in a
swanky apartment in Amsterdam. As the long tail of cancer wagged ferociously
with the loss of health, status, means and wherewithal, from the full-length
windows in my living room, a voice whispered: Jump!
It could have ended things suddenly,
without having to live through further adversity and privation that has become
part of my story. My hesitation came from the desire to tell a better story.
When Platitudes Become Cruelty
In the comments that followed the sad
news, there were many statements in the theme of, "Suicide is not the
answer."
Reading all that left me quite
incensed, and hence this blog, because that only works when counselling those
exhibiting suicide ideation. It is unfeelingly cold and wicked to suggest that
after the suicide has been committed.
My prayer is that those who appear to
have the answer are not met with such overwhelming circumstances that no other
option is presented in their predicament except for suicide.
The Fragility of Humanity
The fragility of our humanity is
sometimes not understood without a personal encounter of indeterminable
consequence. Even my two encounters with life-threatening cancer do not furnish
me with the audacity to question the mental state of another when met with a
wall of adversity that presents no hope or respite.
In many cases, people do need a
different kind of confidante, before whom no wrong would be imputed against them.
They are the warm embrace of succour and comfort, shining light into the
darkness to see a path in life even when failure has snatched a prospect from
reach.
A Lost Opportunity
I recall a saying that has stood with
me from an uncle, way back in 1980, he said, "An opportunity once lost can
be regained after a temporary setback."
I'm saddened the young man saw no
further opportunities. May Phil Moyo's soul rest in peace, and his family and
friends be comforted by the fond memories of his remarkable life.
