Dear reader,
Why do we make promises? When we chose the theme for this issue, we expected a sweet collection of love stories; odes to vows held close and kept. Instead, we learned that promises are so much more than that. What you are about to read is an honest and vulnerable portrait of the messiness of human relationships. It’s an exploration of the gritty, tangled threads that hold us together and pull us apart. We noticed that the failed promises are the ones that really stuck with our readers, the ones that were broken or strained, or made for the wrong reasons. But, even amongst the pain and disappointment, through these stories, something triumphant emerges: proof of the desperate and enduring need for understanding, trust, and connection.
In the pages of his issue, an anonymous writer dusts off the generational secrets her family has carried in silence for decades, buried but never gone. Mattie Valinski shares the hidden gems in her notes app, where fragments of sentences capture moments and people she may never see again-- a promise to remember what the bits and pieces truly mean. Alexis reminisces on the frightening weight promises hold, big and small, and makes promises to herself to never forget the things that matter most. As you read this issue, we hope you can connect to the promises people have shared, and maybe make a few to yourself.
What is a promise, really? Words that leave a bitter taste in your mouth, a ghost that tugs at your heart, a floor that might give out from under you at every moment. Something that feels so heavy yet so easy to break. All the things you’ve been and the things you will become. As we move into the summer, we urge you to be gentle with your promises.