Ice Krispies.

(sorry)

Earlier this summer, I made a trip to the Lincoln Park Zoo on a warm, long weekend afternoon. It was, surprisingly, pretty therapeutic to walk around alone for a few hours and capture some animal photos.

Thanks to my slight addition to TikTok, I recently learned a new word: sonder — the realization that every person who passes by you is living a life as vivid and complex as your own.

I’m a pretty introverted person, but I’ve strangely found a lot of peace these last few months around groups of people. Whether it’s hauling my laptop to the Starbucks down the street or taking a walk on the lakefront trail, it’s been refreshing to see strangers enjoying the city. It seems like this may not be the case for too much longer if you read the news, but for now I’m embracing the warm feeling of solitude amongst others. Thinking about how each of us are on our own path while weaving in and out of others’ has been bringing me a sense of comfort.