Suicide in University Dorm

Today I went into class, started with a quiz (they liked this one better, it was multiple choice), talked about the second half of British History (it was from Civil War to the end of World War Two. I know I've rushed it, but I've got five countries in one semester so we're just rushing through everything. Britain has enough history to get two classes).

At the end of class, I was informed that my students were going back to the dorms. They no longer think I speak fast, but now that they know they are not graded on what I say (these are transfer students who come from many different walks of oral English, and I didn't think it fair for those who have not been exposed to oral English before). I walked back with a few to where I get out, and they told me that maybe I heard from Ben or Adam, but there had been a suicide last night. They only knew that the girl had jumped from the top of the dormitory, many people could not sleep because they were afraid, and that the girl called her friends and said "I want to die" but the roommates thought she was joking.

I told them if they wanted to talk, please talk to me. And I thought back to all the times I've seen or heard people I know tell me about how they'd attempted suicide. I so wish nobody had attempted. But the reality was, I did have many friends who'd attempted suicide, though they all told me well after the fact (mostly they tell me a few years after the fact, when they have recovered from those feelings, and it takes me by surprise when I realize I had no idea at the time). Not one friend, but a handful of friends. And that feeling showed up again and apparently was obvious on my face ("I didn't mean to make you sad! I'm sorry!")

My heart went out to the girl. I wondered what sort of pressure she must have felt. I talked about it with Adam, and he expressed concern about if there were any mental facilities for people to go to. So we took initiative and told our students at English Corner if they need someone to talk to, we're available. The students who live in the dorm are shared by Adam and I, but the girl was not one of our students. She was a media-communications major at the Art College.

At English Corner, I learned a few more things- the girl had pressure from a romance (this is how it was worded), and felt pressure from a grad school exam coming up. I also learned that the students in my Friday Survey Class will be excused, as a therapist is coming to talk to all the people who were in the building.

As far as the campus goes, it's been kept very hushed. This is the second college student suicide in Kaifeng recently (a student somewhere else ate fertilizer and then set themselves on fire). Nobody talks about it unless you bring it up, but sometimes, students in the other areas don't know. Nobody's telling them, and they continue their very carefree lives, unsaddened and unthinking about what has occurred because they don't know. So for those who do know, it's a very eerie feeling.

Ben knew this morning from some students, but Adam and I were told. Adam was told right before class, so I'm kind of glad I was told after class. It's such a sad thing, a somber thing to have happen. It weighs on you, and I'm glad the students will be talked to. But they'll be talked to in a mass conversation, and I'm not sure if that will be enough?

Then again, I'm not really sure what mental facilities are available, though I'm not sure there are many.