Out of the millions people who died due to the coronavirus pandemic, there was a mother of a young teen named Leymo. At that time, Leymo was 17 years old. He was left alone with his sister in 2020, with no source of income to survive on. On top of that, Leymo had to go through the struggles of being an autistic Black man. He didn’t fit in. But gradually, he figured it out. And two years later, he dedicated a heartfelt letter to his mom that was adapted into an animated documentary titled “Love, Leymo.”
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by Burst
In this stirring short film released in May 2023 by CBC Documentaries, Leymo Mohammed, now a filmmaker and aspiring actor, reads his heartbreaking letter to his late mother, telling her about his struggles, his goals and the lessons he has learned. The documentary has been directed by Randall Okita, and produced by Leymo and his girlfriend Amita Zamaana.
At the beginning of the documentary, he says that he wants to share his struggles as a 20-year-old man with autism, trying to support himself without his biggest advocate, his mother. Leymo’s mother was a personal support worker in St. James Town, Toronto. “I want everyone to know that everyone’s life is not perfect. It’s not like how you see on social media or TV, because those are just fairy tales.”
Representative Image source: Pexels | Photo by Daniel Reche
He begins his visual letter by addressing his mother, “Dear mom, I can’t believe it’s been two years since you’ve been gone. Not a day goes by when I don’t think about you and miss you. Mom, if you were here right now, you’d be so proud of the things I am doing.” He then goes on to describe how he is a first-year student of a broadcasting and television program.
He says that his professors are very nice and treat him like a normal teenager, and the students too approach him to hang out with them. Talking about how he survived his mother’s death, the man says, “I have to support myself now. So I went around and got a job. I am working at a movie theatre.” He explains that although he doesn’t get free popcorn, he does get free movie tickets which is a pretty big win for someone who loves movies.
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by Joanjo Puertos
He says that he tries to be a good elder brother to his little sister Biffu. He tells his mom about his girlfriend Amita, whom he talks to almost every day. There is also a mention of a childhood friend Michael, who helps him when he needs someone the most.
He elaborates on his everyday struggles, from self-taping as an actor to living around as a Black man. “Sometimes I think we can’t win against this world. Life is so frustrating when everyone is against you and nobody is listening. It is so hard to not react and just keep quiet. I feel like I’m gonna explode,” he speaks, pouring his heart out. His emotional expression was further enhanced by the colorful illustrations and animations that the documentary depicted.
In the next part of the video, Leymo tells his mom about one of his childhood passions - The Wiggles. His mom always supported him to be a fan. Despite being on a shoestring, she would take him to Wiggles concerts. “The Wiggles recently did a show in Toronto. They invited me on the stage to perform your favorite song ‘Taba Naba,’” he informs her.
He wraps up the letter with kind words for his mom, “I miss you to death like you were everything to me.” In Leymo's words, she was his biggest supporter and it was tragic how COVID took her away from him. “You don’t have to worry about me anymore, I am going to be okay. I’m going to find a way. I have support. I am learning a lot about myself and my place in the world. I’m figuring it out in my own way. Nobody can ever fill your shoes. But there are people out there doing their best. I promise that I will continue to be the kind-hearted young man that you raised.”
Ladder leads out of darkness.Photo credit 
Woman's reflection in shadow.Photo credit 
Young woman frazzled.Photo credit 
Will your current friends still be with you after seven years?
Professor shares how many years a friendship must last before it'll become lifelong
Think of your best friend. How long have you known them? Growing up, children make friends and say they’ll be best friends forever. That’s where “BFF” came from, for crying out loud. But is the concept of the lifelong friend real? If so, how many years of friendship will have to bloom before a friendship goes the distance? Well, a Dutch study may have the answer to that last question.
Sociologist Gerald Mollenhorst and his team in the Netherlands did extensive research on friendships and made some interesting findings in his surveys and studies. Mollenhorst found that over half of your friendships will “shed” within seven years. However, the relationships that go past the seven-year mark tend to last. This led to the prevailing theory that most friendships lasting more than seven years would endure throughout a person’s lifetime.
In Mollenhorst’s findings, lifelong friendships seem to come down to one thing: reciprocal effort. The primary reason so many friendships form and fade within seven-year cycles has much to do with a person’s ages and life stages. A lot of people lose touch with elementary and high school friends because so many leave home to attend college. Work friends change when someone gets promoted or finds a better job in a different state. Some friends get married and have children, reducing one-on-one time together, and thus a friendship fades. It’s easy to lose friends, but naturally harder to keep them when you’re no longer in proximity.
Some people on Reddit even wonder if lifelong friendships are actually real or just a romanticized thought nowadays. However, older commenters showed that lifelong friendship is still possible:
“I met my friend on the first day of kindergarten. Maybe not the very first day, but within the first week. We were texting each other stupid memes just yesterday. This year we’ll both celebrate our 58th birthdays.”
“My oldest friend and I met when she was just 5 and I was 9. Next-door neighbors. We're now both over 60 and still talk weekly and visit at least twice a year.”
“I’m 55. I’ve just spent a weekend with friends I met 24 and 32 years ago respectively. I’m also still in touch with my penpal in the States. I was 15 when we started writing to each other.”
“My friends (3 of them) go back to my college days in my 20’s that I still talk to a minimum of once a week. I'm in my early 60s now.”
“We ebb and flow. Sometimes many years will pass as we go through different things and phases. Nobody gets buttsore if we aren’t in touch all the time. In our 50s we don’t try and argue or be petty like we did before. But I love them. I don’t need a weekly lunch to know that. I could make a call right now if I needed something. Same with them.”
Maintaining a friendship for life is never guaranteed, but there are ways, psychotherapists say, that can make a friendship last. It’s not easy, but for a friendship to last, both participants need to make room for patience and place greater weight on their similarities than on the differences that may develop over time. Along with that, it’s helpful to be tolerant of large distances and gaps of time between visits, too. It’s not easy, and it requires both people involved to be equally invested to keep the friendship alive and from becoming stagnant.
As tough as it sounds, it is still possible. You may be a fortunate person who can name several friends you’ve kept for over seven years or over seventy years. But if you’re not, every new friendship you make has the same chance and potential of being lifelong.