Synaptic

By Gabrielle Anderson '22 and Christa Miller '20

Welcome to the 40th edition of The Writing Anthology. As we all learned this year, change happens quickly. However, transition tends to go slowly, bringing with it feelings of denial, shock, anger, frustration and stress. Transition can also bring us closer together and give us hope.

By Marin Harrington '21

Differences between cultures are frequently the root of conflict, and these types of conflicts are often well-documented. Less discussed are the instances when people unify despite their cultural differences, or, even more profoundly, expand their own worldview by understanding someone else’s cultural perspective.

By Allison Stuenkel '20

The short story “Recitatif” by Toni Morrison truly challenged the unconscious stereotypes I did not know I believed.

By Lauren McKee '22

I stood on the sidewalk where the warm Mexican sun greeted me. The air still held an edge of chilliness, enough that the shadows were cool to stand in. A line of enclosed motor taxis waited in the street to take us to the cemetery.

By Barbara Engleheart

In modern societies, violence is typically categorized into justified violence, or violence necessary for “the greater good,” versus violence as evil, criminal and unjustified. There are two constructs for which this differentiation has been naturalized so strongly that we usually would not even consider drawing parallels between them: soldiers and terrorists.

By Madaline Hucks '20

Adolescence is a time when both boys and girls are discovering themselves and interacting with their peers in new ways. First kisses and hand-holding are hallmarks of this time, and one’s first “puppy love” may take over their hormonal and dramatic selves. But what happens when this lovesick admiration goes wrong?

By Alora Nowlin '21

One of the most valuable skills we can learn today is how to live sustainably. This is easier said than done. There is not a class that can teach you how to live sustainably in the course of a single semester, since the resources that are available to us are ever-changing.

By Emma Carlson '22

As popular stand-up comedian John Mulaney once dryly remarked in a special: “None of us really know our fathers.” And while it was said in the spirit of morbid comedy, it also rings a little true.

By Lauren Goeke '19

I vividly remember my trip to Alberta, Canada in the summer of 2018. The wheels touched down on the landing strip. I found myself in a foreign land where the landscape, people, and priorities were completely different from my home in St. Louis, Missouri—and different from the college I attend in Pella, Iowa.

By Emma Clodfelter '21

Perhaps the most unique trait of spiders is their silk. Despite other insects producing silk at some stage in their development, spiders remain distinctive due to both sexes using silk throughout their entire lifespan.

By Kayleigh Rohr '20

This paper deals with the impact of home and housing on health in Mayan communities, particularly in Yucatán. Kayleigh’s expansive investigation draws from areas such as human rights, environmental studies and the biological sciences in order to illustrate the interdependency of housing and access to culturally-appropriate health care.

By Various Artists

Art and editorial credits for 2020 edition of the Central College Writing Anthology.