As we settle into a second COVID winter, with Roe v. Wade in jeopardy, the Omicron variant on the rise, and Antarctica melting at record speeds, it seems a new emergency crops up every day. We aren’t equipped to endure this much tragedy, and certainly not for this long. These emotions accumulate and we have nowhere to put them. All we can do is try not to buckle under the weight of it. But some days are harder than others. For this issue, we are debuting pieces that meditate on catharsis, and what it means to feel.