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Posts tagged the gap

Ugh. These stories destroyed me (in the best way possible). If you ever need your faith in humanity restored…

Australian “Angel” Saves Lives at Suicide Spot

Snippets:

In those bleak moments when the lost souls stood atop the cliff, wondering whether to jump, the sound of the wind and the waves was broken by a soft voice. “Why don’t you come and have a cup of tea?” the stranger would ask. And when they turned to him, his smile was often their salvation.

For almost 50 years, Don Ritchie has lived across the street from Australia’s most notorious suicide spot, a rocky cliff at the entrance to Sydney Harbour called The Gap. And in that time, the man widely regarded as a guardian angel has shepherded countless people away from the edge.

Despite all he has seen, he says he is not haunted by the ones who were lost. He cannot remember the first suicide he witnessed, and none have plagued his nightmares. He says he does his best with each person, and if he loses one, he accepts that there was nothing more he could have done.

and

Racked by PTSD, a veteran finds calm in a pound pup named Cheyenne

Snippets:

“It was like, ‘What are you doing? Who’s going to take care of me? Who else is going to let me sleep in this bed?”

For a long minute, Sharpe stared into the puzzled face of his 6-month-old pit bull. And then slowly, reluctantly, he backed the barrel of the .45 out of his mouth.

“Eighteen vets commit suicide every day in this country, and one animal is put to sleep every eight seconds. They can help save each other.”