“On Giving Up Antidepressants During a Pandemic,” an essay by Kirsten Parkinson.
The author goes meds-free when the world is having a major depressive episode. “Maybe depression is a normal response to a global pandemic. We don’t really have benchmarks for such an event. If I get down, what can I use to help me bounce back?” * I do not plan to cry. I am lying on...
“Amazon Package,” a poem by Mari Pack.
What to do with what we have ordered. “I said, Fix me.” Amazon Package . I wanted a thing in the shape of a Yom Kippur fast, smelling of hands clasped in anguish. I bought it online. The package slid up and down in various directions . on black belts in one of Amazon’s famous fulfillment centers...
“I Don’t Want to Go Back,” by Zibby Owens.
A New Yorker contemplates back-to-school season from the countryside–a mother’s call to arms. “I want to do the right thing. I just don’t know exactly what that is right now.” * I don’t want to go back. As a lifelong New Yorker, I hate to admit that. But it’s true. I’m worried. Worried about what will happen...
“Bottled,” a short film about grief by Christine Sloan Stoddard.
Mourning a great-uncle and a world before quarantine. “My real-life grief hadn’t vanished, but it felt lighter, more manageable. Then the shutdown hit …” To view the film, click here or on the link at the end of the artist’s statement. Artist’s Statement Sometimes art is an oracle. Two years after the death of my Uncle...
“July Morning, 2020”: An Interlude with Michelle Cacho-Negrete.
Sometimes it might seem we’ll be okay after all. “… some little part of me prays that we can hold on to the beauty and love in the world before it’s all vanished …” July Morning, 2020 The Scarborough Marsh at six o’clock this morning, our daily bike ride’s preferred time, is peace incarnate. Yesterday’s thunderstorms cleared the...
