Two years ago, I was told that three of my best friends from middle school were going to leave, meaning I had to start my high school journey almost entirely alone. I was...

At the beginning of quarantine, I was “blessed” with the company of my two older sisters who were sent home from college. In their minds, coming home was a curse, and I...

The pandemic inspired many people to leave large, crowded cities and move into smaller towns like Leonia, where my family immigrated seven years ago. Such a massive demand...

I remember looking at my phone and seeing a notification from Snapchat. V sent a snap. Confused, I opened the text. “We should become best friends,” it read. Although I was...

I felt behind. I was a very timid person even before all of this. I was not able to handle social situations that well so I would overthink everything. I wasn’t funny, I...

It was a couple of months into the pandemic, in the middle of the night, when a small part of my brain asked a very troubling question: “What if I’m not a girl?” From...

My grandma flew regularly to Indonesia to visit and care for her mother, my beautiful and strong great-grandmother, Atai. Though Athai was ninety-six years old and raised...

Walks at night helped me clear my mind, and I found myself taking them frequently. Taking a breath of fresh air after being stuffed in my room all day helped me relax. One...

People crowded the streets from sunrise until sunset every day; every block was alive with civilians who were walking their dogs or on their way to work. New York City,...