From the Editor: The Saudade Issue
It’s the feeling we all know, the one we shy away from putting a name to. Buildup & breakdown. Waiting & wanting. Leaving here & coming home.
It’s always been difficult for me to separate nostalgia (which is a dirty liar) from saudade (which is every form of truth that we let it encompass). I think, though, that I am beginning to speak its language. Memory is no one’s native tongue—but, as I’ve realised from immersing myself in the work of the authors, artists, & musicians in this issue, it comes to us quickly if we open ourselves to it. Let it soak into our skin, some kind of forgiveness.
For our second issue, the Half Mystic team took a deep breath. We slowed the race of the notes. We closed our eyes to listen to what comes next. And this song was born.
Issue II of Half Mystic is an exercise in the tremors of remembering. It is a tribute to the music that tugs at our skin, crawls beneath our fingernails, refuses to be silenced, changes our path without even telling us its name.
Reader, here is what I have learned from partaking in this issue’s creation:
We find saudade when we finally let ourselves breathe in the memories, however soft or sharp they may be. When we embrace the loveliness in loneliness, sing to the rhythm of never knowing why. All we can do is exhale & trust in the songs that have brought us this far already. To this moment in fathomless unraveling. At this point on the map.
Issue II: Saudade is out now. The Half Mystic team has poured so much of our souls into it, & we hope you find as much light in reading it as we have found bringing it to you. Featuring creators such as Dorothy Chan, My Double My Brother, Lydia Havens, Lana Bella, & more, this issue is for nights soft & aching; for days tender & sorrowful; for moments when only music can ease the hurt of remembering.