by Mauli Chopra “I’ve been big and small. And big and small. And big and small again.” Mitski I grew up in a 3rd world country known for its population, pollution, and above all poverty. India is a beautiful country with complex architecture and generous culture that is often misrepresented or not represented at all […]
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She’s not a druggie or an alcoholic, and she’s not mentally ill. She’s one of thousands of college students who can’t afford a place to live. She might be someone whose scholarship doesn’t cover housing. Or her family lost their home after racking up mountains of medical bills. She could be the first in her […]
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I was 23 years old when I got my first writing break. A college friend was working for the editor who’d acquired rights for famed Olympic gymnastics’ coach Bela Karolyi’s autobiography. I wrote a proposal, and my friend put it in a pile with the other potential writers. A few weeks later, Bela called and […]
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So much has happened since last semester. You’ve changed. Maybe you started hanging with new friends or had to say goodbye to someone you used to trust. Or maybe you decided to go vegan. Along the way, your view changed, and you along with it. And that’s OK. You’re growing, moving forward, becoming more you. […]
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Reclaiming the power (and pain) our complexion has on us “Ewww! Your epidermis is showing!” I can still see those three saucy girls approaching me and every other vocabulary-challenged kid on the blacktop during elementary school recess. Such good actresses they were, each one wrinkling up her face in disgust to sell their ruse and […]
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When I heard Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s opening statement, what struck me, as it struck so many people, was her recollection of the laughter of two teenage boys—their uproarious laughter at her expense. It made a memory, one that I’ve often pushed down over the course of my life, resurface. The school bus in middle school was no man’s land. No adults except for the bus driver who, with his back turned to us and […]
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Two truths and a lie… When I was seven, a man said I would eventually go crazy. My mom used to tell me: I love you, but right now I don’t like you. A teacher told me that I’m smart but intellectually lazy. Figured out the lie yet? It’s impossible to know without knowing me, […]
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By the time I was electrocuted on an ungrounded stage in San Bernardino, my first band was already over. We hadn’t broken up yet, but the fissures were obvious. Our tensions had been high for weeks, ever since that recording incident or — if I’m being honest — since I began dating our drummer, David, […]
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When heaven gave out locks before my debut as a newborn, my angel on the assembly line must have gotten distracted and given me five times the normal allotment. Perhaps he or she had skipped breakfast. It happens. My mane is not your normal girl’s hair, with its unenviable coarse, horsetail texture, curly frizz on […]
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