By Marina Campoy-LoVasco (’23)

Like dissolves like, except when it is an emotion. When you yell at someone and they yell back at you, your yelling does not dissolve into thin air. Each shout builds on top of the other until the glass in the window has shattered and the walls of the house have started to fall down. The birds that built nests in the windowsills begin squawking too as they dash for safety. The rats in the basement scutter along, shrieking for their fellow comrades to follow to the bunker. The wind picks up and howls through the trees. The arms of the trees swipe at the air and a boxing match begins: branch hitting branch and leaves fluttering to the ground. Of course the rain has started, and so has the thunder. The clouds’ loud voices boom across the sky. Lightning crackles and jumps into the ring, sending a large oak crashing into your neighbors’ roof. 

You and the person you were yelling at are soaked by rain by this point. This has caused your fury to grow even more within your chest and a bellowing growl rips from your throat. 

BOOM. CRASH. Now your other neighbors’ house has collapsed from the force of your voice and they’re running like lunatics through the rain trying to protect themselves by holding their children above their heads. Naturally, the kids are frightened, so they thrash about in the air. The younger one, a small boy named Ted, accidentally (or very possibly on purpose) kicks his father right in the mouth. Now look who’s put a foot in their mouth. The wife laughs at her husband while she holds her five year old daughter, Marrie, over her head. Marrie is crying, but her mother doesn’t notice because her tears mix with the rain and her voice is drowned out by the thunder.

You put your hands up near your head with your index fingers pointed out like horns. You drag your right foot across the floor and begin to run towards your enemy. They break down laughing. You realize how silly it looks. How silly the argument is in the first place. It stops raining, the old oak tree picks itself up and its roots grab the ground securely, your neighbors’ houses are instantly fixed, and your grimace turns into a smile.