Gyasi Byng
Not Always the Hero
It is difficult to realize that someone you respect and care for understands you and people that look like you as self-centered and reactionary because you demand inalienable rights.
A Scream
It seems insidiously cruel that we don’t get to be asymptomatic carriers for the prejudice and hatred that others infect us with.
On Constructive Anger
Being Black and being a woman, I have a complicated relationship with anger. Sometimes I am reluctant to show anger, irritation, or frustration for fear of being labeled an “Angry Black Woman”...Unfortunately, I am frequently angry when existing in most spaces.
Reaching the Perimeter
God creates change in our circumstances and us. I have changed as a result of this season, and I have learned that saying, “I do not have enough,” will have to suffice. I do not believe that God created us to be boundless.
A Visual Vocabulary for Hope
The image of a hand reaching out into the dark encapsulates many of the prayers I have said over the years. In the darkness, I hope for light. I reach out my hand, and I hope that God will take it.
On Constructive Anger
Being Black and being a woman, I have a complicated relationship with anger. Sometimes I am reluctant to show anger, irritation, or frustration for fear of being labeled an “Angry Black Woman”...Unfortunately, I am frequently angry when existing in most spaces.
Show Your Work: How Do You Know What You Know?
Writers, our readers aren’t going to find us out. We’re not playing pretend. Our writing isn’t a performance. We’re simply in conversation with our readers, and we’re showing them how we know what we know at this point in time.
The Blessing and Burden of Knowledge
Do I enjoy having this knowledge about myself? The knowledge that I have anxiety and another bout of depression could be waiting a few months down the road? No, I can’t say that I do....However, knowing that I will eventually have a good day and I will come out of my depression has steadied me.
Don’t Skip Ahead: The Reward of a Satisfying Ending
They were self-contained, well-wrapped packages gifted to a reader like myself. They didn’t let me see the mess of their writing: the ideas that never made it out of their notes, the omitted paragraphs, the anxiety-inducing feedback, the days spent writing alone, the cups and cups of coffee, the third and fourth revisions, the missed dinners with friends, and the feelings of failure.
To be Lost in Space
Any honest PhD candidate will tell you that our work can be isolating. Even though a great deal of our work involves interaction (teaching, office hours, comparing notes with colleagues, attending lectures, and sometimes venting with other students about how we never have enough time), the majority of our work requires great stretches of time spent alone.
How Can We Be Silent?
I’ve been thinking about silence. What role should silence play in our everyday lives? What should be a Christian’s relationship to quiet? Personally, I thrive on silence. Noise and chatter are grating to me. Quiet is therapeutic. When I sit still, be quiet, and remain silent, I’m able to sort through the chaos of my thoughts...
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The Waking is an online literary magazine and a part of the Ruminate creative community that houses high-quality literary writing about what it’s like to be human. We are interested in short-form prose and image-text hybrid work. This art can be beautiful, it can be strange, we just ask that it feels true.