Reject Despair! (if only it was that easy)
In issue #55 of Dr. Strange (1974), the great sorcerer supreme is grieving because of the loss of his lover, Clea. Later in the comic, a malignant force called D’Spayre preys on this weakness. He tries to make the sorcerer give up on living in the real world, where his tragedies continue to ail him, and retreat to an “unreality.” D’Spayre’s seductive offer sounds a lot like an unhealthy coping mechanism, like people turn to drinking or drugs to escape the pains of reality. However, Dr. Strange manages to snap out of it, and “reject despair,” but for most of us, it isn’t that easy. Some of us turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms and don’t move on for years. In general, I think many of us tend to withdraw from others when we’re grieving. Maybe it’s because everyone else seems to carry on as usual, completely unaware of the loss that has shaken our world, and we can’t stand to be around people who don’t feel that same sense of despair. Maybe it’s because we’re told mourning is a solit
