Thanks for the Ride
Strangers tend to divulge their stories to me. I started to notice this trend particularly when I rode the bus to college. During my twenty minute ride to the university, amidst the traffic on Hempstead Turnpike, fellow riders would open up to me about their life. Insecurities and all. And even now, I find that […]
Histories
I tell all the Lyft drivers that I’m from Long Island. Just how I used to say that I’m from Brooklyn — I moved when I was ten. But somehow, that sentiment, that connection, surfaces into the conversation. Into small talk, really. Winters in Long Island can be rough, too. It’s just colder here. The […]
At Sunrise
Neighbors could hear the obscenities shouted from the fourth story window on the eve of the New Year. Couples shuffle back from dinner reservations and small children cling tightly to their mother’s hand. All who come back are coming back before midnight. And all could hear the profanities that hang in balance from the fourth […]
Music as Memory
I’m only 15. I come home from a September day at the park and listen to “Fractions,” innocent at my first glimpse into a first love; “It’s good to see you, I missed you last night, that’s such a lovely color, it goes with your eyes.” * I walk back from the bus with my […]
time
there are times when you walk into a room of old faces, into a time warp. four years seem like ages ago now. so much growing since then. so much feeling. so much does not stay the same. but sometimes, you need to call upon what was once so visceral. what was once so vivid […]
the bottom of the earth to clear skies
like a record player that breaks, i’m talking seasons, i’m spitting out winter on repeat; the rubbing alcohol on my fingers, the unapologetic sickness that takes over, arriving without preparation, making a splash, like the last person you want to encounter in a restaurant or at a movie theatre, or anywhere, really. vulnerable thoughts, anxious […]
small town summers
sipping wine coolers by the lake in the shade, making out by the water’s edge close to midnight, nowhere to go and nowhere to be. late drives through town in a fresh july air so thick you feel like you can breathe the best and worst at once. fast food signs along the highway route […]
The Hair Chronicles
1997-1999: I didn’t know what it was like to be self-conscious just yet. All I knew was that it felt too warm to always wear my hair down. The texture was thick. The curls felt heavy. The humidity was sticky. Whenever I could, I’d have my mom brush my strands back into a tight ponytail. […]
Not Everything is Written in the Stars
Not everything is written in the stars, but writers find a home in connecting the dots, in relaying defense mechanisms through the signs. Because you see, zodiacs should tell you why you feel how you feel and do what you do and why you are who you are. Zodiacs know why he is your ex, […]
The Agony of Doing Nothing
I love relaxation. I love having no responsibilities on the horizon. I know I’m past the age where it’s socially acceptable to say that aloud, but it’s true, even though we all, including me, have to grow up into adults with responsibilities day in and day out. However, I never knew what it was like […]