by Jorina Teneqexhiu

If home is where the heart is 

my heart is split in two. 

I committed to one place 

but I long for the other. 

Having two places I call home 

is sometimes a privilege 

and sometimes a curse. 

I encompass twice the love 

but risk twofold the heartbreak.

I am immobilized. 

I can never be at the place I long for 

because the oceans between us are deeper  

than salty waters. 

So when I am asked where is home? 

I think of the other half of me 

buried 4,727 miles away 

and I am reminded 

I will never truly belong in either place 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jorina Teneqexhiu is a first-generation college student who hopes to impact her audience through her art and writing. Jorina attributes her love for writing to her favorite teacher, Ms. Swerdloff, who sparked her passion for poetry. She is also a biology major with goals of attending medical school to become a pediatric doctor. 

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Steven McCrystal lives in a town called Bo’ness in Scotland. He started painting in Art Therapy and found the creative outlet very beneficial. It helped him come to terms with the traumas he’d been through and enabled him to look at his troubles in a different light.  

McCrystal enjoys painting abstract art, but his repertoire also consists of emotive work and elements of his bipolar experiences. He has found that there is nothing better than feeling an emotional connection to the art he produces and hopes viewers of his art find that same connection.