My work explores overlooked ordinary rocks, collected since childhood, as sources of comfort amidst past traumas and as a means of self healing. Growing up without a mother figure and with an emotionally absent father, comfort was found in these rocks in the way they reflected my experiences of neglect. These rocks reflect attempts at healing, past traumas, and the continual reshaping of memories through different textures, colors, and forms inspired by rocks. From rough and jagged to smooth and soft, their qualities embody the contradictory comfort found in unhealthy forms of self isolation. The rocks also serve as metaphors for how fragmented memories, like broken pieces of stone, can come together to form something stronger. Just as a rock is shaped through sediments pressed together over time, trauma can shape a person into a more resilient version of themselves.

The use of paper, an already fragile and delicate material, also reflects this act of becoming. The process of shredding paper into tiny pieces beating it into a pulp to finally reshaping it into a stronger material and form expresses the ongoing process of growing from moments of hurt and finding a sense of wholeness in the aftermath of trauma. This labor of love in making paper clay and carefully recreating the collection of rocks acts as a way to offer love and attention to the younger version of myself. Through this act of care, feelings of nostalgia and happiness reemerge along with feelings of shame and frustration as fragmented memories are experienced anew in this current stage of my life. Each recreation then not only functions as a way for me to care for the younger version of myself, but also reshapes painful memories recalled in the process.