A Declawed Cat
By Anonymous
Content warnings: references to self-harm
Anger is a problem. And I treat anger as a terrible person would a cat—if claws scratch things, remove the claws; if anger breaks things, remove the anger.
Read MoreNumb is Trapped in Numbers
By Li Yin ‘26
After a good cry from a scolding for being 2% away from 100%, for being one away from a five, I hold that gutting pain in my chest. It is at first blunt and piercing, but it slowly fades, and I let out a laugh. Every pore of my body, clogged by generational trauma, tightens. But laughter, and the boldness and unavoidance of its accompanying breaths, time and time again becomes another breath, becomes another step into clarity.
Read MoreWe Know No Balance
By Li Yin ‘26
The buzzing engine, the faint cabin light, the sharp cry of vexed infants, the muffled noise of food carts rolling. I wake up shivering with Hong Kong thousands of miles away. Or maybe more. Everything weaves together by chance, and the intricate, complicated, and unpredictable world carries us like the ocean carries a wooden vessel. The vessel floats, thinking it owns itself, its capabilities, its existence. But the next second the ocean may decide to swallow it whole.
I close my eyes again.
Read MoreWhen Pretense Falls Short
By Van An Trinh ‘24
I’ve always felt like I was a first draft of a person. Every environment I’ve been in has highlighted an unbridgeable difference between myself and the richness of others—like I should have contained a self, somewhere, that was lost in the gap between my actions and their bearing on who I was.
Read MoreRuminations on OCD
By Riya Balachandran ‘24
Crouched naked on the ground, my hands and knees are digging into the rug I can never clean right. I’m sitting in front of a small fan with tears in my eyes and lingering traces of isopropyl on my fingertips.
Read MoreCognitive Dissonance
by Sofia Rose ’22
You are hit with a brilliant epiphany! You’ve been stupid! When you’re feeling bad, you should reach out for help! Obviously! You are a fully functioning person in control of your fate, so you make an appointment at the Stone Center for Monday.
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