Letter from the Editor & Excecutive Director Macie: Soccer Mommy always knows what to say. On my walks over the past few weeks, I’ve listened to her song, “Circle the Drain,” countless times. She sings about going around and around, which is how my mind feels right now. In the midst of a pandemic, it feels selfish to feel bad for myself, but I don’t think it’s wrong to be honest. I have to admit that I’m scared. I’m stressed. I’m confused. I bounce back and forth between anxiety to apathy, trying not to get caught up in either. Tala: I find myself napping, a lot. And trying to construct a 1000-piece puzzle as if my life depends on it. I haven’t been able to sit in silence, but I haven’t been able to enjoy music either. Instead, I’ve been listening to an audiobook that claims to offer a Brief History of Humankind. Spoiler alert: despite illustrious mythologies of our ancient ancestors, our origins can be traced to a middling species that occupied the background of a much broader world. Today, while our world seems to have screeched to a standstill, so much life continues beyond ourselves. I find comfort in that. Macie: I think we have the right to allow ourselves to circle to drain for a bit. We also shouldn’t feel guilty for indulging in small pleasures while chaos and collective anxiety circles around us. Tala: My screen time has skyrocketed. Books I’ve promised myself I’d read lay untouched. Schoolwork is stressful yet I barely spend any time on it. Some days I’m circling the drain, and some days I feel like I’ve fallen in. Macie: I want to laugh, and, more than that, I want to see my friends laugh—through the lens of Zoom, of course. This instinctive desire doesn’t change anything, but momentarily it can make me feel a bit more human—less alone. Tala: And, according to the audiobook I’m listening to, the desire to be less alone is precisely what makes us human. We only thrived through finding community. The days where I’m reminded of mine are the days that I can wish dishes instead of circle the drain. Macie: This issue is filled with stories that I hope make you feel less alone. I have a feeling you’ll be able to relate to at least one emotion expressed in the following pages, whatever emotion that may be. Tala: And hopefully, after reading this issue, you realize that you have a community in The Wake.
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With love, Macie & Tala
APR 13 - 27
