Creative Writing Commons^™

Even Flow, Marianne Koleng

be Still

This piece attempts to connect the "ebb and flow" of music and art with the sometimes strict interpretation of anatomy. It calls to attention what often seem as opposites - the cold nature of medicine and science with the seemingly warm and free nature of music and art. While many see them as opposites, this piece attempts to convey they are really two sides of the same coin.

Anne-Katrine, Tiffany Tran

be Still

I wrote “Anne-Katrine” in memory of my late cousin. The poem explores how our attention lingers on those who have shaped us, reflecting the quiet, persistent act of remembering someone across time and space. It examines how mindful attention allows us to honor the past and keep cherished moments alive, even when we cannot hold them.

"Sees" The Day, Angelica M. Ruiz

be Still

No abstract provided.

What The Stethoscope Can’T Hear: A Book Review Of Every Patient Tells A Story, Faith Abraham

be Still

My love for reading has always shaped the way I see people and stories. Through books, I’ve learned to listen deeply to characters, voices, and emotions. That same curiosity drives how I approach medicine and the humanities. Reading reminds me that every person carries a story worth understanding, and that healing often begins with paying attention.

More Than Medicine: The Quiet Power Of Attention, Eleni Geletu

be Still

This short reflection is based on my experience as a Patient Advocacy Representative. It tells the story of a phone call with a patient in distress and shows how simply paying attention and showing care can make a real difference. The piece reminds us that healing often begins with compassion, not just medicine. It highlights the importance of listening, empathy, and human connection in healthcare.

Keywords: compassion, patient care, attention, empathy, narrative medicine, advocacy, healing

The Crystal House Of The Valley, Melissa Gonzalez

be Still

No abstract provided.

Reflections On Paying Attention, Cyril Blavo

be Still

This is a reflection on attentiveness in communiciation.

More Of, Maxwell Corrigan

be Still

More of is an album I produced and released in my second year of medical school. Writing music can be a way to process, much like journaling or other forms of artwork. In this way, my albums reflect many personal experiences, thoughts, and other innerworkings. My songwriting process is done in a free association style, as I find my music is most meaningful when it comes from a deeper consciousness. While many of the songs in More of resonate with classic imbalances of attention and care within relationships, my music functionally acts to draw out the things I often need …

Stillness, Fatima Bawaney

be Still

No abstract provided.

Continuing On, Stephanie Singer

be Still

No abstract provided.

A Gaze That Lingers, Vidhi Raval, Naman Gupta

be Still

No abstract provided.

The Gift Of Attention, Ahron J. Petrillo

be Still

This poem explores the shifting rhythms of attention as both a challenge and a gift in the life of a student of medicine. It illuminates the path toward knowledge and healing. Woven into its lines is the tension between effort and rest, intellect and care, science and humanity. The imagery of fire and thread reflects how learning is not only about the consumption of information, but also the shaping of character. Ultimately, the poem affirms that rest, presence, and attention are not distractions from becoming a healer, but integral to the art of it.

Curating Serenity, Archana Banda

be Still

Attention to me is appreciating the simplest things amidst the joys and hardships of life. Throughout my medical school journey, I have rediscovered the importance of practicing self-care, gratitude, and embracing an abundance mindset. Being self-aware about our own health and optimizing it allows us to care for patients with the utmost compassion and generosity. Paying attention as future physicians means empathizing with patients at their most vulnerable moments and restoring hope in a brighter future. Attention and generosity are inherently interconnected because when providers are attentive to their patients’ health concerns, they can be generous with their time and …

Returning Back To Piano, Pooja Sai Singu

be Still

This piece reflects my journey with the piano, a relationship that began with joy, faltered under the weight of competition, and has now been renewed with gratitude and perspective. Writing it was both a way of honoring the memories tied to music and a reminder of how returning to something familiar can restore balance in the midst of new challenges. For me, piano is no longer about perfection, but about presence.

Conversations In Silence: Connecting With Nonverbal Individuals With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Allyson Nepomuceno

be Still

No abstract provided.

The Gravedigger, Arielle Soukal

Honors Projects

A city of old brick buildings, rich history, and winding waterways.

Welcome to Soli.

In the city center lies a crescent-shaped island that houses a park hiding more than just a body. When a pregnant Dryad is found on the forest floor looking as though she belonged on an autopsy table, Sentinel Ashwyn Nyx is called onto the scene by the local Warden. Piecing together her death with the assistance of the Warden's team of young Officers, Ashwyn vows to see the end of the case and bring peace to the woman's family. But things aren't as they seem, as …

Day In The Life Of A Labor And Delivery Nurse, Jordyn Roel

Honors Projects

"Day in the Life: Labor & Delivery Nurse," explores the profound duality of labor and delivery from a nurse’s perspective. It will honor the sacred role of the labor and delivery (L&D) nurse, whose hands both welcome new life into the world and comfort those facing the unimaginable pain of loss. This piece aims to offer a deeply human and empathetic portrayal of the realities of this field, showcasing both the breathtaking beauty of birth and the profound grief of natal loss.

Entre La Sombra Y El Lienzo: Clea Dessendre Como Modelo De Personaje Secundario Complejo, Lydia Huijbregts Jaen, Antonio Horno López

GDI. Revista de investigación de Género, Diseño e Innovación

Introducción: Este artículo analiza a Clea Dessendre en Clair Obscure: Expedition 33, explorando su versión real y la pintada en el lienzo, y su impacto en la narrativa del juego. Metodología: Se aplicó un análisis narrativo, psicológico y ludológico, integrando teorías de duelo (Kübler-Ross), socialización (Baumrind) y comunicación (DiSC) vinculadas con la jugabilidad. Resultados: Clea-Real encarna disciplina y perfeccionismo; Clea-Pintada, una proyección maternal. El gameplay conecta su psicología con la experiencia del jugador. Discusión: Las identidades paralelas muestran cómo traumas y expectativas moldean personajes complejos. Conclusiones: Clea evidencia cómo la narrativa y la mecánica se fusionan para crear …

Moon Moth, Britain Noelle Powers

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Desmadre, Xiomarra Milann Gonzalez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

My project functions as a collection of poems that each hold stories that tie them into the theme of their assigned subsection and into the greater narrative that each subsection creates, resulting in the takeaway from the overall manuscript. From the first word of the introductory poem, to the final line of the concluding, the poems take you on a journey from a feminine existence that is struggling at the helm of external, oppressive forces leading into a self-reckoning and embracing their own internal power within the systematic chaos and uncertainty that plagues them through the underlying notes of each …

The Misadventures Of Popcorn And Zelda, Lori Lynne Kullberg

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The Value of Animal Protagonists for Young Readers in Children’s Literature. This series is about my rescue cat and dog, Popcorn and Zelda, who are brought together at different ages and stages of their life. Witnessing their sweet interaction, mischievous playfulness, and close bond, I am immediately provided the inspiration for the early reader series of my thesis, The Misadventures of Popcorn and Zelda. My animals offer a constant stream of entertainment in watching how they interact with not only one another, but with me, as well. Oftentimes, Popcorn and Zelda’s behavior mirrors how I think a person would act …

Ode To The Infomercial, Edward Wade

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

'Ode to the Infomercial' is a poetry collection in five sections which explores themes of contemporary American life, parenthood, and the media landscape. While primarily written in a narrative voice, the poetic approach is as diverse as the content. Interwoven throughout the collection is religious imagery and political posturing accompanied by healthy doses of self-criticism and humor.

Ink (2025)

Rabble, 2014-

The student-run features magazine covering the fashion, art, music and culture worlds at VCU and in Richmond. Published annually in print and updated regularly online.

Érase Una Vez En Tiempos Modernos… Colección De Relatos Reimaginados, Jose Rolando Rivera Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Esta tesis examina la reimaginación narrativa de cuentos de hadas en diálogo con leyendas urbanas, situados en países hispanohablantes y en contextos históricos específicos, como una metodología crítica capaz de transformar paradigmas culturales, visibilizar voces marginales y cuestionar estructuras hegemónicas. Desde un enfoque interdisciplinario que integra estudios culturales, psicología narrativa y teoría decolonial, se propone entender las historias como sistemas vivos que modelan identidades y configuran memorias colectivas.

La reimaginación se plantea como una forma de intervenir estratégicamente en los relatos heredados mediante operaciones como la deconstrucción, la excavación psicológica y la reubicación cultural. El estudio aborda, además, subgéneros del …

Bias And The Writing Process In Adaptations And Retellings Of Mythology, Haley Sanderson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

My thesis is an examination of how adaptations and retellings of mythology are written and affected by readership and reception of mythology. I compare American Gods by Neil Gaiman and The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood and how they are written as adaptations and retellings of mythology. As seen in both novels, the presence of the mythological source material in adaptations and retellings of mythology is equally influenced by authors’ perception and the influence of readership. Approaching the ideological positions of Atwood and Gaiman through the similarities and differences of The Penelopiad and American Gods provides a deeper insight on the …

Naam, Amna Haider

Graduate Thesis Collection

This thesis is a collection of short stories that blends realism, speculative fiction, and South Asian folklore to examine how identity is negotiated through belief, culture, and survival across borders. The stories center characters who must continually interpret the worlds they inhabit in order to sustain self identity. Names in this collection function as sites of power and vulnerability: they are inherited, altered and concealed, shaping how characters are seen and how they see themselves. Alongside names, the supernatural and myth emerges not only as metaphors, but as lived forces, drawing from Islamic folklore and mythic traditions to articulate experiences …

Alexander Asboth: Hungarian Separatist And Union Civil War General, Paul T. Brueske

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

This thesis reveals the experiences of a Hungarian Separatist, Alexander Asboth, and how he applied those experiences in the American Civil War. It examines Asboth’s biography, his expansive view of the Union, and how he differed from many commanding officers in the Western theater. Moreover, this thesis illuminates Asboth’s military service, including his leadership of a diverse force at Barrancas, Florida, and adds to the understudied collaboration of foreign-born officers and Black soldiers in Gulf Coast Civil War history.

During the 1848 Hungarian separatist movement, Asboth served as an Army staff officer under the leader Lajos Kossuth. However, the separatists …

His Own Eyes, Noah Banas

Gandy Dancer Archives

No abstract provided.

What Holds Me, What Roars In Me, Jasmeen Kaur

Gandy Dancer Archives

No abstract provided.

Cultuurschok: Hoe Je Spreekt Nederkaans, Sheila Verkaik

Gandy Dancer Archives

No abstract provided.