“Why want another universe if this one has dogs?”

The Midnight Library — Matt Haig

This short story is inspired by the fiction novel and the New York Times bestseller chapter title and quote above.

I often think of where I could have been and wish I would have made different life choices, but among all the stress and desires to be somewhere else, I am reminded that there might be another life where you two aren’t by my side. I wouldn’t want to experience that life because I remember what it was like to not know you. You’ve given…

I remember the night clearly. The night I was told you passed away. I have kept you a secret from family and friends for years.

Soon after your passing, I wrote about you in an essay for a class assignment. You were my role model. You were simple, caring, and kindhearted. The 6th grade English teacher was moved by the story and asked if she could publish the story in the local newspaper.

“Sure.” (It was too much effort to care.) I didn’t look for the print; not sure if it ever went through. My teacher was sweet enough to…

You don’t know what being tired means — you’re too young!

You can’t be tired. You’re supposed to be full of energy right now!

If you’re exhausted then I don’t know what I am!

Yes, I feel exhausted. Yes, I am technically a “young” adult, but I plan to consider myself young until my tenth decade.

I’m a student who has been continuously going to school since Head Start (or preschool). I used to be proud of the fact that I didn’t take any breaks in my education after high school. I realize how silly that is now.

Today, I…

Am I about to cave in?

When I joined Medium, I felt excited to write about experiences, concepts, and advice.

It has been at least two weeks since I’ve tried to published anything, despite having prompts and partial stories written. I even have a dedicated time in the evenings for writing on this platform.

I think we know by now that humans are not supposed to wait for motivation to complete goals or tasks. Motivation won’t always save you, but consistency and daily to-do lists just might.

So…I don’t feel I was waiting for motivation. In fact, I wanted to…

Great piece! I need to exercise my mentor mind. I'm a trained learner with an atrophied mentor mind who can't seem to "teach it simply".

Thank you, Krishna! I hope you find more of my work interesting. I think your bio is very relatable, and I am excited to read your stories!

Hi Kim! I apologize for the delayed response. It is nice to meet you, too! Thank you for the kind words!

If you don’t know much about the academic and research environment — it can be full of failures, awkward networking events, intense meetings, and endless denials. Or, if you are familiar with this type of world then your experience is most likely similar to mine. My academic journey has been and still is full of stress and self-learned attempts on how to say “no” to new projects.

But award acceptances and idea sharing through research presentations give me hope that someone else might believe my work is relevant and real. …