I went to the gym yesterday and saw a woman who is obviously severely anorexic. This isn’t the first time that I’ve seen her and every time it leaves me unbalanced. If I saw someone starving on the street I would give them money or food-but this isn’t that simple. This is physical starvation walking hand and hand with deeper emotional needs.
As I run on the treadmill across the room from her-I watch. She’s there long before me and stays long after I leave. I notice that no one seems to be looking and I can’t tell why. Are they sneaking glances, but feeling powerless to help? Or do they not even see her at all? I don’t know. I have to believe that they are as lost as I am because the alternative is too scary to think about. We wouldn’t continue running and sweating on our machines if someone keeled over from a heart attack. We wouldn’t stand and watch someone place a pistol to their temple. Yet we are watching another human being slowly take her life, right before our eyes.
I am ashamed of myself.
I feel as if I should do more, but I don’t know how. So, I can at least do this…
I can write.
I can say it out loud and believe in the power of words sent out into the world.
I can believe that being seen, even by one person, is more powerful than being ignored.
I can hope that maybe one of you has a better answer than mine…
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