Tales of Sunset from the President's Desk

I finished reading Concerning My Daughter by Kim Hye-Jin a while ago. As much as I enjoyed reading the book, it made me think of a million little things. Like, what happens when we grow up? What is the answer to death? As an adult, would I be expected to make breakfast everyday? Do I have to make breakfast everyday? How do we survive in this world if we live alone? Is it important for us to survive? What makes this world worth living? Is standing up for others a good thing to do? What does my mother think about standing up for others? Is it useless? What would my daughter (if I ever have one) would think about standing up for others? Is the world cruel? Am I disappointing my parents? Is my happiness and my parents’ expectations mutually exclusive?

“A dark silence flows between my daughter and me for days.”

I picked up the book only because it had an interesting cover and was short. I didn’t know it would make me think so much. All these numerous questions, I figured that the only way I can answer these questions is by writing them out. By seeing the questions burning up in my head on something tangible in front of me. However, even after writing this whole list, I am at a loss. I don’t know the answers. I don’t know if I should even answer these questions. What I wanted to do then is channel my curiousness into creative writing. And so I did.

Tales of Sunset, the online Summer Camp organized by Redstockings Literary Society in the month of July was born because of the numerous questions that we have. As students, as writers, as poets, as humans. We noticed the lack of encouraging creative writing spaces in our community and decided on building one. This issue of The Redstockings Chronicle features the Camp attendees.

In this issue, every poem is a question, every poem is an answer. I am grateful that you are here and that you are reading this. I hope you enjoy this issue.

Divyanshi Dash

President

Redstockings Literary Society