Monika Karna
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Goals Are Not Meant to Be Realistic
· As a college sophomore, deep into stress, loneliness, and the ‘freshman 15’, I decided to run a marathon. It had been a lingering desire since my senior year of high school cross country, despite College wearing away any fitness… Continue reading
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Be Devoted to Beauty
Beauty dwells in the ordinary, waiting to be noticed. On my way to work, the sun rises at my back thawing the purple, frost-bound trees. Along the sides of the highway, the reeds ripple in the wind, their fronds wagging… Continue reading
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Time Takes Time
· Just a day or two ago, I lay looking up at the bright yellow leaves still clinging to the boughs of the maple trees. Loosened by a slight breeze, a few of them drifted downward to finally meet with… Continue reading
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Journey to Kathmandu Part 3: Swayambhunath
· On the outskirts of Kathmandu, lifted high above the tight-knit city streets, is Swayambhu. It is not the largest stupa in Nepal. Nonetheless, it has been a site of devotion for centuries. Atop the white dome sits a golden… Continue reading
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The Nature of Love
· Never more can we see the beauty of raw life than in a new being, just come into the world. Our kitten, Gracie, is all teeth and claws, downy fur and tiny fragile bones. Sitting still has no appeal… Continue reading
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Journey to Kathmandu Part 2: All New and Unknown
· I could make a long list of all the ways Nepal is different from any other place I’ve been on earth. But a list would be ineffectual. How can the words traffic, cows, dogs, monkeys, mountains, modern three-story concrete… Continue reading
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Journey to Kathmandu Part 1: Painful Beginnings
· Seven days before I left on the furthest and longest trip of my life, I hurt my back. It wasn’t just an ‘ouch, better ice this and not do it again’ kind of hurt. It was the kind that… Continue reading
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The Summer I Learned to Swim
· I stood staring at myself in the YMCA bathroom mirror, trying to stretch a bright purple swim cap over my curly brown hair. It took me a few tries before I did not look like I was forcibly stretching… Continue reading
Monika Karna Writes 