Creative Writing
An essay about native languages. Or, a love letter to the English language.
“There is something about English, my English that feels private. It is easy to forget that it’s used by others. That others can understand it. Or at least somewhat. Perhaps, that impression of understanding is why it feels like such a betrayal when my writing isn’t understood exactly the way it was meant when I wrote it.
At the same time, there’s a secret pleasure in it. Like Maryse Condé’s feelings of possessiveness towards French, I feel a kind of exaltation in the singularity of my English. If no one understands it but me, it is mine and mine alone. There is joyousness in the feeling. And loneliness. But I have always been a lonely child.
I become a writer because of this loneliness. I call it loneliness, but in hindsight the word doesn’t quite seem to fit. Loneliness is passive. My loneliness is anything but. I write because my loneliness demands it. I write furiously, and with avarice, constantly searching for the perfect words to fill me. I hunger. I am hunger. I consume words, sentences, books. I consume myself. ”
Linguistic Self Portrait
Magnolia Song
A magical realism novella about a young girl grappling with grief, generational trauma, and growing up. Inspired by elements of Filipino folklore and my childhood experiences growing up in the American South. Originally written for my Senior Project in Creative Writing at Barnard University (Fall 2024).
“Lou’s mother held her arms high above her head, palms opened heavenward to cup the cloudless summer sky. From Lou’s vantage point, her mother’s hands seemed big enough to hold the whole world. Lou wanted to run to her—to be held, too, by those hands—but Mari’s hand, warm and solid and bigger than Lou’s, kept her rooted to the spot.
The air, thick and heavy, pregnant with humidity, began to stir slowly, weaving between her mother’s extended arms. Its sluggish pace grew faster and faster, gathering clouds from the east. Lou imagined she could almost see it: whip-quick tendrils of silver flirting with the bowing branches of the magnolia trees. She shuddered with the leaves, and her sister squeezed their entwined hands. More wind carried in the sharp, sweet smell of ozone: a storm was coming. Her Mama had taught her the signs.”
Academic Writing
Medicine
“Restorative Sleep” in “Practical Lifestyle Medicine in Oncologic Emergencies” in the 3rd Edition of Oncologic Emergency Medicine: Principles and Practice
Senior Thesis in English
“Reach out dead hands to comfort me”: Death and Desire in Tennyson’s In Memoriam
Scholarship on Alfred Tennyson’s In Memoriam, in its focus on the text’s hermeneutics of loss, has largely overlooked the corpse in the elegy. Even queer readings of the text, which frequently connect the poem’s articulation of grief and death to its articulation of a physical, queer desire, oversimplify the messy reality of decay into a corpse that is a single, unified object—a representation of death, more than an active, biological process. This thesis approaches the body in In Memoriam as disorganized fragments of body-residue, exploring how the text’s articulation of desire for reunion with the dead is embodied, eroticized, and queered by this alternate conception of the corpse. Through close reading of sections of In Memoriam, consultation of other scholarly work on the poem, and historical research regarding Victorian deathways, this thesis ultimately imagines mourning as erotic engagement with the remains of the lost beloved, a process In Memoriam staunchly refuses to complete in its hunger for total, physical reunion with lost, loved Arthur Hallam.
Integrating Acupuncture in Radiation Therapy and Survivorship
A review synthesizing the current evidence for the use of acupuncture in managing common side effects of radiation therapy, which suggests that acupuncture is a safe and effective intervention for several radiation-induced toxicities, and its integration into routine oncology care has the potential to improve patient outcomes and enhance survivorship.
A guideline on restorative sleep from an article about healthy living for emergency room and primary care physicians taking care of cancer patients.
Copywriting and Social Media Content Creation
Liga Filipina of Columbia University: Collegiate Cultural Organization
I wrote and created social media posts, captions, and programs for events hosted by Liga Filipina, a collegiate organization celebrating Filipino culture and heritage.
Mr. Philippines 2024
Mr. Philippines is Liga Filipina’s annual male pageant. Participants from collegiate Filipino organizations throughout the tri-state area display their talents, personalities, and unique relationship with Filipino culture in a friendly competition judged by previous pageant winners and other prominent Filipino community members.
Writing and design by Len de la Cruz
Custom lettering and art by Gabe de la Cruz
Lasa: Taste of the Philippines 2024
Lasa is Liga Filipina’s annual community dinner where we gather to share Filipino food and the accomplishments of our community. The showcase varies every year but has historically included songs, dances, poetry, visual art, and even research! Since 2023, the members of Liga Filipina have also produced a collaborative zine that is distributed at Lasa.
