Submerged

An underwater landscape, hidden by pitch darkness and engulfed in crushing pressure: This is where the sound-world exists, exploring its inhospitable habitat but ultimately searching in circles. In some ways, this piece is a metaphor for mental health, and what it can feel like when responsibilities are piling up but the stress is past the point of healthy and motivating, and it has become paralyzing. You watch the surface quickly shrink away as you plummet into the depths, enshrouded in an unbearable volume of inky water. Occasionally you catch a glimpse of the surface and you make some progress towards it, swimming frantically against the weight of your liquid tomb, but you are utterly exhausted. Only when finally allow yourself to rest do you notice the slightest bit of light behind your eyelids – you’re floating to the surface. Once you emerge among the turbulent waves, the intense rush of sound that hit your ears is so much more than welcome – sounds you once took for granted, the wind, the water, the birds. Though the surface is turbulent, you have the energy to navigate it once again. But how long will it last? Such a question is of the least importance in this setting – the ocean and its skies need appreciating. -Leah Graalfs, October 2025