HELLO JI!

A WORD (OR TWO HUNDRED) FROM THE EDITOR

There are several ways one can be lost. A dog can run away during a storm and struggle to find home. A child can wander away in a grocery store and both parent and child can experience a few moments of panic. These situations, thankfully, tend to get resolved quickly.

There is another kind of lost that happens to adults outside of obvious awareness. Some people feel lost, they tend to drift, too burdened for passion or drive. They’re unable to remember their higher purpose. For these people, remember this story:

A man driving through a town deep in the country stops his car and calls to a farmer sitting on a bench in front of the general store.

“Can you help me? I’m completely lost.”

The farmer asks, “Well, do you know where you are?”

“Yes, I saw the name on the sign as I drove into town.”

“All right, do you know where you’re going?”

The driver named the town he was trying to find.

The farmer shrugged. “Shoot, you ain’t lost; you just need some directions.”

The next time you find someone who is lost, help them find their Point A and Point B, then nudge them in the direction of what is truly important.

The above story shared by Stan Shetty has deep resonance in this month when everyone seems to be celebrating love. But what of those who don’t have anyone to be with? No one who brings them chocolates or roses? Who feel dark thoughts closing in?

In one of her columns, Dr Vicki Bismilla had written about “a pervasive feeling of sadness and anxiety”, about a worldwide increase in cases of depression, which is now the leading cause of ill health and disability in the world.

In March 2017, the WHO reported that 300 million people worldwide were suffering from depression, she wrote.

She quoted WHO Director General Dr. Margaret Chan who said, “These new figures are a wake-up call for all countries to rethink their approaches to mental health and to treat it with the urgency that it deserves.”

While countries formulate policies, individuals can do their part, too.

We all know someone whose life is not lived in Instagram images garnering a million likes. For them, heart emojis are conspicuous by their absence.

While putting up the craft paper hearts with more glue than glitter that your children or grandchildren bring you, spare a thought for people who may be putting up a brave front but crying out for help on the inside.

Neha Karamchandani shares a deeply personal story about depression and its far-reaching impact in our cover feature this month.

SHAGORIKA EASWAR