concatenation: denouement 

In my first article for this series, I wrote about how the thread of time can be difficult to hold onto while juggling the distractions of the world. Well, somewhere between July and December, life caught up with me. I didn’t realize how fragile that line actually was until I dropped it.  2023 shattered.  Sorting…

concatenation: july 23

It’s been a month since I’ve been here. On my first night, I wrapped myself in soft white cloth and remembered something I had never experienced. Embraced in the second-hand smoke of the people who came before me, I became alert to the fact that I was somewhere I deeply didn’t understand. Who still smokes…

concatenation: june 2023

I’ve always felt very ready for whatever is about to happen in my life. Even if I can’t control the snowball of time, I’m fine just rolling with it. But something is different now. This school year went by so fast. I am daunted by the fact it could be gone so quickly, because I…

May Gray: Concatenation Pt. 5

Where I grew up, we always talked about “June Gloom.” It’s when the heat on land sucks in the fog from far out on the water, friends dissipate as obligations become null, and my general apathy about summer is at its strongest. But May? Never.  My mom would always quip around this time of year…

Boyish @ School Night 4/3/23

Monday, April 3rd, 2023. I am walking up the smoke-stained staircase, the carpet grayed by travelers like me. Rounding a rickety exterior walkway, I scoot around the bleach blond couple making out dangerously on the railing. I push through a thick curtain into a hazy art deco scene, populated by people shrouded in cloaks of…

concatenation: march 23

Being able to draw was once a dream of mine. Corners of my childhood bedroom are still lined with discarded sketches of characters that unintentionally look like knock-off piñatas. I would spend hours online watching “how to draw Olaf” or “make flowers look real,” but quickly lost interest as soon as the petals fell or…

concatenation: february 23

I didn’t check the weather forecast before heading into this month. With my classes settled and life on track, I waited for another day of sun with my eyes on the prize.  Instead, I was greeted by an incredibly windy February. Days reached speeds of twenty-to-thirty miles an hour, leaving me to force headfirst through…