Local Suicides

There have been two high profile tragic suicides in the news in the last two days around here.

Just today, a woman stepped in front of a train in Harrisburg. The report said she was walking along the tracks and when she heard the train, stepped right into its path, covering her face first. She was not from Harrisburg. They don't know yet where she is from. How sad.

It was yesterday or the day before that the body of a Portland man was found on a bench in Chip Ross Park in Corvallis. He was dead of suicidal violence, the report said. Nobody knew why he had come to Corvallis to end his life and his name has not been released.

Suicide rates in Oregon exceed the national average. I wonder why this state is so sad. It's a beautiful place. But, I've heard over and over, hard to make connections here. Maybe people are lonely.

I had some friends leave, once retired, for New England. She said they're so happy there and people are friendlier. They had not made significant friends during the time here. Another person I knew briefly was upset to be unable to find friendships here and wanted badly to move back to the east coast.

I have not been able to make connections either. But, at least, I have my cats. I do think often there must be somewhere to live where I could make friends easier. But I think it's more the fact people are so very busy trying to survive and tired out. I've met lots of nice people but everybody seems ultra busy and ultra tired.