The moments before, the moment of, and the moment after. All of the what ifs that come to mind around that moment, all of the what ifs are time stamped. Times and places: when you were when, and then, and where you are now, and then again right now. And now. Now, when you truly breathe deep, what’s left is another day.

I am one of thirty artists including visual artists, writers, poets, multimedia artists working on a project with John Bauer, called What’s Left. This is a traveling exhibition, starting at the MacRostie Art Center in Grand Rapids MN, and then on to venues big and small around the state.

JohnBauer says

Suicide is something that can affect any family, regardless of income level, race, geographic location, or any other social factors. This project aims to provide a space for participating artists and the broader community to reflect on the impact of suicide and explore the use of artistic expression in the processes of grieving and healing.

Our goal is to create a proactive dialogue on suicide and mental illness to break the stigma that surrounds both, in hopes that we can literally save lives.  I am happy to tell you that we as a large community have already made progress before the exhibit even opens. School districts have become very proactive by training teachers about suicide through the Question, Persuade and Refer program, a support group for attempters and survivors has been formed and meeting regularly, and local foundations (Northland and Miller Dwan) have done site visits in hopes of investing in the exhibit.