In 2013, Amy Bleuel went to social media and asked anyone who had struggled with a mental illness to draw a semicolon on their wrist and post a photo. A semicolon symbolized that a sentence wasn’t over yet, and neither was their life.
Just like that, Project Semicolon was born.
Since then, millions of people have shared images of semicolons in an effort to erase the societal shame attached to mental illness. The hope was that rather than people allowing their challenges with mental health to be the end of their story, it would become part of their story.
This past summer, I was speaking to my mom on the phone, and I nearly fell out of my chair when she told me that she got a tattoo. After all, the Mennonite faith preached that your body was a temple.
But, when she informed me that she got a semicolon, it all made sense. My mom had front row seats to a horrific show, and she spent countless nights wondering if her only son would make it to see the sunrise. At a time when our society never spoke openly about mental health, my mom and dad had many difficult conversations about suicide.
When I asked mom why she chose to get that tattoo on her wrist she said, “I got it because I am hoping that it will lead to meaningful conversations.”
Mom proceeded to tell me that less than an hour after she left the tattoo studio, she went to Sephora to get some makeup. The woman helping mom noticed the fresh ink and she rolled up her own pant leg. To mom’s surprise, this woman revealed that she too had the tattoo of a semicolon.
With tears in her eyes, this woman shared that she recently lost her cousin to suicide. And just like that, a taboo subject that had been swept under the rug for way too long was now being discussed in a public setting.
This interaction was a reminder that nothing creates an emotional connection between two people more than someone’s story.
To learn more about project semicolon please visit Project Semicolon.