ORLANDO, Fla. — A cozy corner inside Yasim Flasterstein’s bedroom is where art intertwines with heart.
- Volunteer Yasim Flasterstein answers letters for nonprofit
- She's a trauma survivor herself and wants to help others
- MORE INFO: Letters Against Depression
Each letter and drawing she crafts there is unique to its recipient.
“I hope they know that a stranger cares about them,” she said.
The messages contain words of hope and support, encouraging and acknowledging the individual’s journey and struggles.
Anyone can request a letter through the nonprofit "Letters Against Depression."
Flasterstein is just one of the volunteers who responds. She has sent out more than 50 letters and hundreds of drawings.
“I think even in our darkest of moments when we feel there is no hope- there is hope,” Flasterstein said. “Because I’ve seen it in other people.”
The coronavirus pandemic is causing people to lose their jobs, to self-isolate at home, to be cut off from so much that is familiar.
“I just know what it’s like to struggle.”
A trauma survivor, Flasterstein lives with PTSD and other mental health illnesses.
Flasterstein sees a kinship with elephants. She loves these gentle creatures for what they represent. She said elephants are known to clear paths in the forest for other animals to follow. The quiet, kind leaders of the animal kingdom.
“I think we can all play a role in creating better paths for people, and leaving the Earth better than we found it," she said.