Seagulls in the Wintertime

The way the seagulls fervently beat their wings 

against the winter-white sky

makes me think that they are excited about something.

Though it is freezing, frigid, and frozen,

the light blinds my eyes like frost on a window.

Their arms fly at me, reaching out 

and grasping with pointed, razor-like claws.

Gouging out parts of me I didn't know I had,

pecking away at my mind until I am numb,

injecting me with the thoughts, 

that I need to change my old ways,

the idea that without the birds,  I am nothing.

How does a bird wield a needle

that cuts so deep,

that leaves such a painful scar?

They make me feel like I am a pebble

in a stream of other pebbles.

On the this bright winter day of a place

that they think will help us get better. 

In this riverbed of multicoloured stones,

a cascade of water washes over us.

Water, not made of oxygen or hydrogen,

but the thoughts they spoon feed our minds.

How we, the pebbles,

we, the patients, 

we, the peculiar,

aren’t good enough to be free.

Like a bird with clipped wings,

we stay trapped in this river.

And the birds that fly above will squawk out diagnoses 

and chirp out prescriptions. 

Like a preacher to his parishioners,

they tell us what to think,

leaving their droppings in the stream

to cloud the vision of the pebbles

who sought help from them,

but only got worse. 

Charlie Bastien ‘28

This piece is very personal to me. It is told from the perspective of a mental hospital resident, who views the doctors like seagulls — pecking and prodding at the patients — urging them to get better, only for them to get worse. It took me a long time to come up with metaphors and other types of figurative language, but over time, I was able to piece together this poem.

The Wake

Bailey Arnone ‘27

This photograph depicts two young men carrying a friend on an open and endless beach. The emptiness and peaceful nature of their surroundings means to contrast with the symbolism of the burden that they carry. They navigate a vast expanse together, showing the importance of connection in the face of isolation and hindrances. Additionally, the small sign pointing toward the "Guarded Area" gives the image a second meaning, suggesting that traveling into an unguarded area, or life's uncertainties, can better be done together.