quarterlife is notoriously angsty. We frequently eliminate themes from our theme bucket in fear that we will receive nothing but break-up poetry. Naturally, quarterlife: the quarantine issue was a daunting prospect. But, apparently, all it took was a pandemic for Whitman students to send us all the joy, flowers, and togetherness they could muster. We aren’t complaining.

In the following pages, you’ll find the same spunk that spills from Whitman’s campus. From one family’s chronicled exploration of dragon onesies, to an ars poetica on egg yolks, to a photo of 90 ceramic flowers made during quarantine, this issue is brimming with personality. Yet submissions also stay cognizant of the chaos and emptiness of the past six months; one student responds to George Floyd’s death, another photographs herself in an empty dorm room, another makes an origami graduation cap for a skull.

Perhaps more than angst versus joy, what unites this issue is its intimacy. From March to July, students sent us their work and their place of quarantine, which you’ll find under each author’s name. We remain a part of the Whitman community, witnessing one another’s experiences from afar. We hope you like the joy, the angst, and the flowers.

Sincerely, Anna + Heleana

P.S. Multiple pieces in this issue were created by students who graduated in spring 2020. We’d like to thank them as well as the members of our staff who are no longer at Whitman: Hunter Hansen, McKee Nguyen, and Penelope Boone. We miss you and appreciate your work on quarterlife!