thoughts on death....life....

[hope08]

Today we were reminded that life is fragile and complex, and that death is real. If there is something true to find among the rumors, it might be this: Pain is real. Life is hard. (Yes, even for famous people.) Medicine can bring healing. Abused or misunderstood, it can also bring death.

People get stuck in moments. Hearts break and don't fix easy. Love is nothing easy. It is not cheap. It is the greatest thing that happens on this planet, and so it comes priced as gold. One of my best friends used to sing the words "love is war". There is the fight for holding on. And the fight for letting go. The hardest thing i have ever experienced is the learning which and when. But i still say it's worth it, that love is real and possible. There are things worth fighting for, and love is at the top of the list...

i don't know the details of Heath Ledger's life or death. Like i said, it doesn't feel like my place to guess. He was an artist, and in that - he was a damn good one. And the little bit i've read suggests he was a man who had no interest in the celebrity game - he saw right through it. He desired to be a person, not a product. He desired real things. He valued love. He believed in it. He was a father. The great tragedy of this day is not that the world lost a famous actor. The great tragedy is that a little girl lost her daddy today. Sisters lost a brother and parents lost a son. A story ended much too soon.

But we are still here, you and me... And so the question is what to do with that. What to do with the news of the day, and this air that still remains in our lungs. i would say these things: You are not alone. Your life matters. Your story is important. You are alive tonight for a reason. You were created to love and to be loved. You were not meant to be alone. You are not alone. You were meant to do life with other people. You need people who know you. You need to know people. Your voice matters.

And if you are a person in need of help, please know that help is real. We often say that "rescue is possible". We say that because we believe it to be true. The issues we speak to - these issues are treatable. But we have to take the first step. We have to choose help. We have to choose to live healthy lives.

We are certainly strong. But we are also certainly fragile. Please be careful.

[hope08]

i know, i know, drop it already...but i did want to post this. makes me feel a little better, for some reason....??

_______________________________________
Some GREAT NEWS…as earlier reported, cops had recovered a $20 bill that was rolled up - and thought to have drug residue on it.

Law enforcement sources tell AP the $20 that cops found in Heath Ledger’s apartment was clean — it did not contain drug residue.

Cops recovered the bill, tested it, and the results were clean.

[hope08]

was out early yesterday....couldn't post earlier.

thanks for the postive feedback from everyone else. any life is a life. and i am aware that people die every minute of every day, and that is something that lays heavy on my heart. wanting to help and do something about it, yet you sometimes just have to watch from afar....but that still doesn't mean it can't effect a person. John you will be in my prayers, and i really hope you take a second look at this. now that i found out (via news, so who knows what is the truth) that there was 'narcotic substance in baggies' it saddens me even more. it is not about a celebrity; it is about a fellow soul that struggled with an addiction just like the rest of this board....and unfortunately he lost that battle. it should be a lesson learned to us and everyone around us. not to mix medication (although i am wondering if it was suicide now) to have enough RESPECT for your children, if nothing else, and to fight for them. to get better and clean for them. when you bring another life into this world, you should hold responsible, no matter what happens.

[toxictome]

Hmmm...i liked your post, Hope....gives me something to think about...and I didn't equate it to really have anything to do w/ actors death...keep posting

[CATUF]

"The power these celrbrity people possess leaves the easily influence to make personal observation that would only be privy to if they Knew the individuakl personnally"

I'm not quite sure how to respond to that statement.

As to what Hope said, I would suggest that it matters not at all if her thoughts on the late actor had any factual basis.  It seems clear to me that his death caused Hope to think, and write, about how she wants life and death to factor into her life.

I took Hope's post as having very little to do with the life (or death) of an actor.  I thought it had much to do with how she (and we) might meet this moment and however many moments may follow.  

In any event, I thought Hope's post was beautiful and moving.  

As the father of two little girls (and two not-so-little boys), I couldn't helped being touched by the truth of her statement that "[t]he great tragedy is that a little girl lost her daddy today."  Whatever else might be said or thought, that fact remains - a little girl lost her daddy.

Look around, Johhny - "Heaven's all around you if you're looking."

[Avalancheblanche]

What a beautiful post, hope.
My sister died at the age of 30 from alcohol addiction.  I always tried to instill in her the beauty of her life and her purpose here.She was so beautiful and had the singing voice of an angel.  She was the mother of a beautiful baby boy who is now 3.  Fortunately, his father keeps her memory alive for him. I am so very thankful for that.
Your message really warmed my heart.

[kimmiek]

are you saying that because he had some addiction problems he and his family dont deserve the respect of a fellow human being that struggled and lost the battle?  There is more to every single person that we know and dont know.  It seems you are just trying to stir a pot for no reason.  Hopes post was her thoughts on life and death and how fragile life is and how we are all vulnerable.  She wasnt trying to prove something about him one way or another.  Were all human we all have character flaws.  Those shouldnt take away from the fact that a young life was cut short and that his life and death affected the lives of many others. This is a sad thing.  Regardless of what his character flaws were.

[hope08]

well it sounds to me like you have some bigger 'beef' with celebrities....i said nothing about cosa rica, coke, or whatever the **** you were talking about. seems like maybe you just hate how the media blow celebs up or glorifies them? well i AGREE with you there. but from what it SEEMED heath ledger was one to stay out of that limelight and his smile portrayed a geniune personality to me.

i don't know why you are going off on this celebrity pedastool when i was only trying to be uplifting.

please read the post over and maybe it will make a little more sense to you. note, there is no talk of costa rica or cocaine...?? where is that coming from?

[johnnykelly]

The power these celrbrity people possess leaves the easily influence to make personal observation that would only be privy to if they Knew the individuakl personnally

[johnnykelly]

Exactly Hope,that was my point.In your discpition of this fellow you made can only re-late some journalist opinion at that day and time.The other day,last night a gentleman that had a girlgriend that knew and had a sexual re-lationship with him as they met in Costa-Rico,both in the process of bying Rock-cocaine,check last-nights post,theres more to this loving father and family man. Remember we dont know,WE know of Them. Is that a fair observation.

[dove3053]

Life and love are fragile. I saw one of his first movies "A Knights Tale" and I loved the movie. I never knew who he was and I thought that was the only thing he did.

I believe after death you go to a better place.

Dove

[CATUF]

My screen showed that Hope said "little bit i've read suggests . . ."  and that was after she said that she didn't "know the details of Heath Ledger's life or death."

[hope08]

i am a bit confused by your post....???

i never said i knew or was personal with heath ledger. he is a celebrity but also a human being.

were you asking me a question, and if so what was it?

[hope08]

in all of this, with our own personal lives, and even celebrities like heath, there will always be that constant struggle between good and bad. i am thankful i never accidently mixed pills (i have at least 8 diff medications) and killed myself...
WE ARE ALL ALIVE RIGHT NOW.
pills or not, we are breathing. we may be in pain, mental, physical, spiritual...whatever it may be, but pain is a large part of life. in death people find life. i am always wanting to not be in pain, but at the same time, it's the pain that really does make you stronger. wiser, able to help others in the spot you may have been in....
be thankful for life.

[johnnykelly]

Hi Hope,So it seems you have a personal insight into this actors death.How long have you to been friends,as you are privy to what this fellow wants a doesant want.I at first didnt recognize the nane,it was only when a fellow member mentioned that he played the suicidal son of Billybob thorton,in that prison guard something-ball.I am not one to put actors aside from their ability to perform,in a higher category than any other person,moreover they are in a position to influence the minds and behaviour of the easier led,be careful.

[anjel75]

Amen! Life IS as fragile as death. One doesn't know when they take that one extra pill or take some things together because they want to feel good, they don't know if that will be the one to do it. I am not saying Heath's death was suicide, but I don't know if the pills were involved at all. He may have taken just one but maybe he had taken something else and it interacted, or maybe since one didn't work, he took another. And you know what, the pills may have not been involved at all. I don't think that what he did was on purpose because he loved that daughter of his too much. I believe it was accidental or unrelated altogether, whatever, it sure puts things into perspective, doesn't it?

[CATUF]

Very nice post, Hope.

[oneeagle]

Ohhh - the duality of both life and love...I liked your post and had to speak up. No man is an island....don't ask for whom the bell tolls...lots of people have been thinking of this throughout history. It is a good idea to remind people that we are all part of the whole. No matter what we feel at any particular moment. And all of our actions affect other people (family, friends, loved ones, and people that we dont even know). And even the most down and out junkie here can actually help another person avoid that mess by being honest and just telling their story - perhaps some people can learn from our mistakes.

[hopsing94]

That was very nice hope. Good post.