Skylar Ewing College Prep English Autobiographical Essay September 21, 2016 Losing the Battle “Even though you may think you don’t understand or know why things happen the way they do or you can’t explain why you love someone, the answer is always right in front of you. You may not see it yet, but you will soon enough” -Unknown. I do not think I truly understood how much pain my aunt, Bobbi, was in until I received the news she had committed suicide. When I found out I was sad, hurt, mad, but mainly I felt regret. My Aunt Bobbi had been struggling with depression for months, when she finally lost the battle; I learned the problem can be deeper than the surface and I have to look at the downside of situations. Before Bobbi passed away, I remember thinking my family should give her space. I knew she had problems in the past, but I thought she deserved more trust than most people were giving her. I thought people can learn from their mistakes and that she deserved to be left alone. Even though I never said those words out loud, I regretted even thinking them. If my parents and other family members had not called her every night to check on her, we may not have had her in our lives as long as we did. I wanted her to be better, therefore, I assumed the best of her. My mom, like most moms, stresses more than she should. I thought her stress over my aunt was a moment she was stressing for no reason, but I was wrong. My Aunt Bobbi had been fighting thyroid cancer and depression for awhile. One night my parents went to run a couple of errands. When they did not return home after an hour I started getting nervous. Minutes before I was about to call my mother, I heard her pull into the driveway. My mom came into the house in a rush, with tears covering her face. I was only 13 years old when my aunt committed suicide. At the time, I did not understand how she could do such a horrible thing. My aunt needed severe help, but I only noticed her smiles when I was around her. She had mastered hiding her pain. My parents saw how bad the signs of depression were getting and they tried to get her the help and support she needed. The problem was my parents and other adults in my life were protecting me from how bad my aunt was actually getting. I know they did this because they thought it was for the best.As aresult it hurt me more, because I thought she was getting better. My family protecting me from the situation was wrong, but I was able to learn from it. Never knowing my aunt was getting worse caused more pain when I found out she was dead. Unfortunately, I figured out the answer that was right in front of me when it was too late. When a person I loved was struggling I refused to look at the downside of the situation and ignored what was deeper than the surface.