For this week’s issue, the Weekender staff collectively decided to discuss childhood. As college students, many of us have recently taken the leap into adulthood, leaving behind a mishmash of childhood innocence and parental support. We have found ourselves in limbo between the comfort of home and the excitement of independence. But now, as stay-at-home orders have brought many of us back into the arms of our childhood homes, we are revisiting our former selves: old patterns with parents, dusty memories and forgotten objects have been re-revealed. 

Three of our writers chose to explore old memories in the form of reflective essays. Staff writer Kathryn Kemp parses out where exactly her childhood ended through the lens of her college experience. Ankita Chatterjee apologizes to Satyajit Ray, a Bengali movie director. As a child Chatterjee brushed off Ray’s movies after her mom attempted to show them to her, only to later realize the beauty of the films. Shannon Hong recounts the experience of visiting her grandparents’ tombstones in China for the holiday of 清明节 (Qing Ming Jie), grandparents she did not get much of a chance to become acquainted with as a child.

Sonnet Phelps reflects on her past through a collection of poetry, each poem representing a different period of her childhood.

Some writers took a more outward-looking view of childhood. Weekender editor Sarena Kuhn compels the reader to realize the psychological importance of play in adulthood. Megan Sousa takes a look at how day cares have been impacted by COVID-19. Lastly, senior staff writer Kaitlyn Hodge speaks to the importance of supporting LGBTQIA+ youth.

This week’s bundle of stories is the complete package of childhood remembrance: the whimsical, the quizzical, the regretful and the urgent.