On the outside . . .
She’s a hard working mom
She always has time for her kids
She has a loving husband
She’s always volunteering
She has a big heart
She’s what every mom hopes to be
But on the inside . . .
Her marriage is falling apart
She’s going to lose her job
She has no time for God
He wouldn’t want her anyway
Her kids drive her crazy
She volunteers to fill her empty heart
But now she has run out of time . . .
On the outside . . .
She’s the prettiest girl in school
She’s a sports jock
She’s got straight A’s in every class
She’s got the handsomest boyfriend
She’s got a snappy comeback for everything
Every girl envies her
Nothing can stop her
But on the inside . . .
She’s hurt and lonely
She’s abused at home and expected to be perfect at school
She wishes she was someone else
She’s gone too far with her boyfriend
And now there’s a third person in the mix
He roots for her and cheers her on
Asking her to just hang on
But she can’t hear him
And soon they’ll both be gone . . .
On the inside . . .
She’s the quiet girl who sits in the corner
Always shy and always with a smile
She doesn’t get picked for groups but she doesn’t care
She doesn’t have a lot of friends but she’s grateful for the ones she has
No boys really like her but that’s ok with her because she’s waiting anyway
She always goes to church
And she always says her prayers
People secretly admire her courage when she stands up for what she believes
She encourages everyone
And judges no one
But on the inside . . .
She’s fed up with life
She just wants it all to end
Her faith is wavering
Her family’s falling apart
“Nobody cares,” she says. “No one will notice . . . “
And like that she’s gone . . .
On the outside . . .
She’s a cute eight year-old girl
She’s always obedient
Always speaks with kindness
She’s first in the class
She has a lot of friends
She’s always quick to help around the house
She’s every mother’s dream
But on the inside . . .
She’s sad and confused
She’s not sure what exactly just happened
Her sister just took her own life
But why?
She looked up to her sister so much
“If Sissy wanted to die, then so do I,” she declares
And then another precious life is lost

And just that fast there are five less people in the world. Did you notice? Do you care? Did you ever ask them, “How are you on the inside?” What would you have done? Did you know that 30,000 people die every day from suicide? And 750,000 in a year? Did you know that suicide is the third leading cause of death for people aged between 15 and 24? And that there are more suicides in a year than there are murders? Now what are you going to do?

(All suicide facts were retrieved by Kevin Caruso)