"I planned a school shooting" w/ Aaron Stark (ep#54)

Listening to Aaron's story was a rollercoaster of emotions. From learning of his tortured childhood and adolescence that lead him to nearly committing an atrocious crime and planning to take his own life, to the joy in his voice when he speaks of the friends who saved him from himself. Aaron's journey is unlike anything I've heard or experienced. Yet, as with any human experience there are universal truths that force us to dig deeper and re-evaluate our own stories along the way. I'll be reflecting on this conversation for months to come. Aaron is clearly on a mission to turn the darkest moments of his life into a bright light to help the rest of us to understand the unfathomable.  He grew up in a painful and abusive environment, witnessing and experiencing violence and substance abuse all around him. He experimented with various coping strategies over the years, both helpful and harmful, but at the age of 15 his capacity to cope ran out. 

 In 1996, Aaron planned to acquire a firearm and attack either North Highschool or the food court of a local mall in his hometown of Denver, Colorado.   Thankfully, the kindness of a friend altered the trajectory of Aaron’s plan, his life, and now he shares his story with the TEDx stage, law enforcement, and audiences like ours to help anyone who might be listening.  

I hope our conversation helps all of us to be a little kinder to the people we meet and hold those we love a little closer when we're together. 

KNOW MORE KNOW LESS PODCAST:

For other platforms:

Listen here:  Apple:  https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/know-more-know-less/id1652659219  

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2fxCXp5AlfajmcTgvSWSGl?si=87be920940534299

 For full episodes and clips:   https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN4wkMATGEXMTU4Xrw-YZTA