How the pandemic made us confront what it means to be alone.
loneliness
The Legion Lonely
“For all these reasons—the socialization we receive as kids, as well as emotional restraint, homophobia, experiences of betrayal, and many others—many men stop confiding in each other, trusting each other, supporting each other, and expressing emotion around each other.”
The Struggle of Having a Pandemic Baby
Giving birth in the last year has meant a suffocatingly cloistered, rather than a communal, experience.
Fear of Suffering Alone
After separating from her husband and entering quarantine, Anne Liu Kellor faces her ongoing desire for a partner and the necessity of loving herself.
Since I Became Symptomatic
A month after filing for divorce, single mom Leslie Jamison contracted COVID-19. She wrote this meditation on single parenthood, loneliness, longing, and frustration while sheltering in place — and sweating out the virus — with her 2-year-old daughter.
On Solitude (and Isolation and Loneliness [and Brackets])
Sarah Fay reflects on four years spent in solitude (and isolation [and loneliness]), viewing it through the lens of punctuation.
Swipe Right: A Reading List about Online Dating
Jacqueline Alnes shares her own dating app experiences and nine stories about the pitfalls of finding a partner online.
The Year of the Cat
A personal essay in which Elisabeth Donnelly looks back at a relationship with a wily cat during a lonely time in upstate New York.
The Year of the Cat
Elisabeth Donnelly looks back at a relationship with a wily cat during a lonely time in upstate New York.
The Year of the Cat
Elisabeth Donnelly looks back at a relationship with a wily cat during a lonely time in upstate New York.