The last letter: what remains behind

T H E L A S T L E T T E R:

what remains behind

(nov,2021-ongoing)

Dear Sayuri, I'm writing to you for the last time, even with all the “what ifs”, to at least try to show beyond your suicide. And in the midst of a whirlwind of feelings and deafening silence, dealing with what is now a reality: you are gone.

Talking about suicide is still taboo, and yet, the poor amount of data available becomes hard to ignore. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 800,000 people take their own lives per year, 98% of them suffering from a diagnosable mental disorder.

Imagine that only during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the global prevalence of anxiety and depression increased by a massive 25%.

How can we ignore such numbers? They alone show us the urgency of talking about this subject. Numbers of which you, Sayuri, unfortunately, are now a part of. Numbers that are bigger than our pain, our tears, our sorrows.

“The last letter: what remains behind” is an ongoing photographic essay where an intimate narrative brings awareness to such a delicate matter, from the perspective of those who stayed. It is my last conversation with my dear old friend sharing the sad reality of this silent pain. Where its first goal is to produce relevant online content on the topic and a dummy photobook. Furthermore, together with a Brazilian NGO, contribute with social actions to promote awareness on the subject.

From experience, I know that many have never thought about all of this. But that doesn't make them immune, after all, there is also another side to suicide that remains, that survives in the people who continue to live and will have to learn to deal with all this emptiness.

So my dear friend Silvia, may our goodbyes be the beginning of a better manner to address such a major public health problem, hoping that we all can understand the urge and the crucial need for mental care for both sides of this story.