Tonight, I finally got around to watching an animated film called Loving Vincent. Actually, the film was entirely hand-painted by over 100 artists over what I imagine was a considerable amount of time.

Visually, the film is stunning. It’s like stepping inside of a Van Gogh painting and watching it come to life. All his paintings that I’ve loved for a long time were in there at some point.

The story was beautifully told and more than just a little sad. Vincent Van Gogh was an incredibly talented painter who only sold one painting during his lifetime. He took his own life because he was tired of feeling useless and didn’t want to be a burden on his brother anymore.

In a career that lasted just 8 short years, Van Gogh produced 800 paintings, many of which are now worth in the millions. It seems a pity that he died never knowing his own true worth.

Maybe the people in our lives need to know their true worth. Perhaps we should quit assuming that people know how we feel about them, about how God feels about them, and let them know in our words and actions.

With the recent upsurge in suicides, it’s vital that we address the issue of mental illness and increase awareness of a subject that sadly is still too often seen as taboo or a stigma. People who suffer severe depression and anxiety, as well as other maladies, need to know that they are not alone and that people out there do care for them. They need to know that there’s hope and help out there.

I definitely recommend Loving Vincent. I believe it’s available through Amazon Prime and Netflix. It’s an hour and a half well spent.