Break – Laurel Seidensticker

For my art, I drew a cartoon that captured my feelings around learning to self prioritize. It took until 2020 to understand that my health and well-being are valuable. While school is important, it is not worth ruining my mental and physical health over. As someone who gets chronic migraines that worsen with stress, 2020 was rough. The unconventionality of this year helped me understand that it is okay to take a day off, and that if I physically cannot do my homework, the world will not end. I chose peaceful colors like blue, purple and light pink for most of the art to accompany the overall theme of rest. The flames burning the homework and the rope are an exaggerated depiction of taking a break from school. The rope is a representation of school itself, and the need to keep working no matter what. During past years, I’ve clung on to the idea that I need to get perfect grades or have perfect attendance; burning the rope is symbolic of letting that go. In a year when health couldn’t be taken for granted, I’ve finally learned what self-care means for me.