Samuel sat in his room, staring at nothing, ignorant to the sounds of his neighbors; to the sound of his parents fighting down the stairs.

He snapped out of his daze after a while, suddenly aware of the sound around him, wanting to block it out once more.

He popped in earbuds and tried playing music to drown it out, but found that he didn't enjoy the music he usually did.

He began surfing throughout the app he used for music in hopes he could find something better he could listen to.

After surfing through the app for a while, he found that nothing was pleasing for him to listen to.

He sighed, setting his phone down on his mahogany desk and opened the computer that sat upon it.

Samuel opened his favorite online game and began playing.

After a short while, he sat back and found he just couldn't enjoy himself.

'My life sucks.' He sighed to himself.

He gave up doing things and merely made his way to his bed and went to sleep.

The next morning, he headed to school, ambling his way through the streets of his hometown.

He watched someone have their purse stolen, but he merely stepped to the side, allowing the man who stole the purse to pass by, thinking: 'it's certainly not my problem.'

"Why didn't you stop him?" The lady asked tearfully. "You were right there!"

Samuel shrugged and passed by the lady, making his way to the school.

He arrived, and was immediately subjected to the daily torment from the school bullies.

BANG

Samuel was slammed into a locker and felt his pockets being searched.

"Now this is what I like to see." A bully held up three dollar bills and a quarter. "Thanks bud."

'It's fine.' Samuel thought to himself. 'It's not like going hungry will kill me.'

Samuel watched the bullies stalk off to harass another kid.

'Well, at least it's not me anymore.' He thought as he made his way to his first period.

He sat and when the lecture began, took notes as he was always required to do.

When the class was over, he packed his bags and made his way to the next class, repeating that six more times throughout the day.

On his last period, just as he was about to walk out of the classroom, a short student tugged his sleeve and shakily asked: "Would you join me and my friend at an internet café?"

'Don't go with him. It doesn't affect you.' Samuel thought to himself, before stopping and thinking about it. 'I suppose it couldn't hurt.'

"Alright. But you're paying." He nodded.

The smile that split the face of the student made his agreement to their offer somehow feel worthwhile.

Samuel silently listened to the two friend's banter as they walked to the café, wondering why some part of him started to feel at ease.

They rented three seats and Samuel found himself smiling for the first time in months, conversing easily with the two other students, listening to them lament about everything from missed headshots to the school bullies.

"Can we exchange contacts?" Samuel offered his number to the two other students, feeling happy for the first time in what felt like years when they enthusiastically accepted and gave him theirs.

Samuel parted ways with them after confirming their numbers were correct, feeling full, somehow. Despite not having eaten anything since breakfast, he didn't feel hunger. He felt something else within him begin to fill.

....

Samuel opened the door to his family's home, immediately greeted by his mother in the kitchen shouting at him.

"You're finally back you worthless prick?" She yelled while chopping onion menacingly.

"I'm home." Samuel sighed, carrying his backpack up to his room, feeling that warm part of him cool slightly.

DING!

His phone pinged with a message from his new companions.

'We really look forward to seeing you tomorrow!'

Samuel smiled and sat at his desk.

"Maybe things aren't so bad after all?"

....

Dear self,

Depression can get in your way. It doesn't matter how shitty your life is. You can let it go and try and enjoy yourself. More often than not it is the act of holding on and bottling your emotions that hinders your growth both as a person and in society.

Let. It. Go.

Even if it's just talking to a stranger about your problems, it can work wonders for your emotional wellbeing.

It doesn't matter if you don't know the person, just initiating a conversation about it will help.

Stop holding your pain so close to yourself. Stop getting in your own way.

Just because you are in pain does not mean that you should allow that pain to turn into an open wound that will then fester and turn into something that will eventually consume you.

Learn to let go.

It doesn't matter if you're as rich as a nation, or if you don't even own the clothing on your back.

Pain is pain. Take a deep breath and leave it behind yourself.

Bottling it up isn't 'fine' it's not 'okay to be treated that way' and it's most certainly not what you deserve.

The same goes for others. If you see someone who is suffering or in pain, what's stopping you from going to them and saying a few words of encouragement, or stopping and holding a conversation to hear their story?

There are so many homeless here on the streets of Seattle. But has anyone really stopped to listen to their stories?

I've worked up the courage to talk to a few.

The few I have spoken to aren't there of their own accord.

Some of them were veterans who couldn't adjust back to their old lives as civilians, and as such couldn't hold a job, forcing them to live on the streets.

Some of them got kicked out of their own homes because they couldn't afford the sky-high rent.

But, I've never seen such genuine smiles from people who are successful.

They aren't letting the pain of their past experiences influence their lives anymore. One of the homeless men I spoke to got hired at a local McDonald's and now can afford a small apartment. Another got a food service job and is sharing it with the third man I spoke to, who is working as a barista.

They were able to share their pain with me, and I was able to share some of my pain with them.

No one is perfect. No one is without pain. But we can try to relieve ourselves of our pain, and we can strive for perfection. We can support each other in our painful experiences and difficulty in surviving.

We don't have to go through our lives alone.