I’ve always been someone who hates to see others low, upset, depressed or feeling sorry for themselves. If I pass someone who looks really down in the street, I try to catch their eye and throw a smile at them. It just seems to tug on my heart-strings when people are down and blue. Which just makes it worse when its people who are close to me.
The boy is unhappy in his job, and it’s really getting him down. Ideally, he should be training to be an electrician (he’s always been one of those who loves to fiddle with things and constantly tries to work out how technical things work) and working part-time in a job that isn’t all that demanding. That’s the ideal. The reality is that he’s stuck in a job that demands too much for him and pays far too little for the work he does. On paper, the job seems great, because he’s working for a company that you can work your way up in. He’s currently number 3 out of 5 – and in that I mean he’s worked up to the position that is 3rd from the top in the branch. (It’s an electrical wholesale company, with many branches across the UK, so in the branch there’s about 5 jobs: the driver/delivery man, store assistant, assistant manager, sales rep and branch manager – the boy is the assistant manager.) But the workload is too heavy, no paid overtime (and he works a lot of hours outside what is required of him), back-stabbing from the sales rep and branch manager…ah the list could go on but its far too depressing! So in short, he hates his job, he’s depressed by the end of the working day and he feels like there’s no escape. Pretty shit.
The thing is, a lot of people get themselves into situations like this and it is a huge struggle to get out of the rut. You’re working, you need the money…so many different reasons for not getting up and quitting. But he needs to leave this job, he’s been unhappy for so long and it’s affecting other areas of his life: his confidence has dropped, he’s not his normal happy self, he doesn’t see much of his friends anymore, he’s constantly worked up about money…it’s just shit. Which is why I’ve been helping him to polish his CV, research training courses…keep him optimistic – because the other thing is that he’s a bad pessimist, never a good thing in times like these. Hopefully that happy, cheeky spark will shine in his eyes again soon…
Yeah, I just hate it when those I love are low. Sometimes I feel like I can really resonate with them though, because I’ve been caught in the throes of depression a few times and I know that at the end of the day, it’s you, and only you, who can pull yourself out of it. So whilst I’m trying all I can to help the boy, at the end of the day, it is only him who can make himself feel better…and I think he knows that really. The last few years have taught me that if you’re down in the dumps…pick yourself up and change the direction of your life. There is no point in staying low for too long if you can do something to change it. Therefore, if you’re not happy with something, change it. And I know that it is always easier said than done. It takes a LOT of courage and bravery to change something, especially if its something that could change the course of your life…but once you’ve made the change, a whole big weight gets lifted from your shoulders and the sun seems to be shinning again. I only wish there was more support out there, especially for people who are low and depressed. Sometimes, it ends in the wrong way. The saddest way. I guess it can get too much and it seems like the only way out is to leave this world; but it doesn’t have to be that way. Our society makes me so angry sometimes.
Hmmm, this is turning into a dark post…think I’m just in a very contemplative mood this afternoon. Hey, ho, my motto…as always…life is much too important to be taken seriously. I reckon I could’ve been good friends with good ol’ Mister Wilde.
