Other Bodies

Emotion Stories

Feelings rarely stay put. Each story follows ten feelings from the deck through a process in the natural world, and lets each one change gradually into the next. Step through at your own pace and stay as long as you like, or let it play: some states pass quickly, and some stay a long time.

They show a feeling as part of a passage, not a place you’re stuck. They aren’t predictions of where yours will go.

A person floats on their back in a dark, tea-brown pool, arms spread wide and face turned up to the sun. A small waterfall spills white over rocks at the upper left, and overhanging leaves frame the top of the picture.
A person floats on their back in a dark, tea-brown pool, arms spread wide and face turned up to the sun. A small waterfall spills white over rocks at the upper left, and overhanging leaves frame the top of the picture.

a seed committing to one direction in the dark

Germination

still → numb → the ache of not yet → uncertain → afraid → overwhelmed → vulnerable → curious → hopeful → alive

the shore, always leaving, always returning

Tidal

love → longing → withdrawn → lonely → numb → still → longing → tender → belonging → love

water on stone, over time

Erosion

guarded → afraid → lonely → angry → exhausted → grief → ambivalent → forgiving → trusting → repaired

a forest moving through its stages

Succession

grief → exhausted → hopeful → proud → ambivalent → regret → forgiving → belonging → changed → still

metamorphosis

Metamorphosis (Dissolved)

afraid → guarded → uncertain → overwhelmed → numb → changed → the ache of not yet → curious → vulnerable → alive
Seen from above and behind, a person sits in shallow, slow-moving river water in a brown swimsuit, their hair gathered in a bun. Their hands rest in the water at their sides. The river is dark and tea-coloured, its surface rippling with reflected light and a few fallen leaves.
Seen from above and behind, a person sits in shallow, slow-moving river water in a brown swimsuit, their hair gathered in a bun. Their hands rest in the water at their sides. The river is dark and tea-coloured, its surface rippling with reflected light and a few fallen leaves.
A close view of wet coastal rock in rust, ochre and deep brown, crossed by straight diagonal seams. Small barnacles and shells dot the darker surface near the bottom of the frame.
A close view of wet coastal rock in rust, ochre and deep brown, crossed by straight diagonal seams. Small barnacles and shells dot the darker surface near the bottom of the frame.
A hand holds a single rust-orange leaf at the surface of dark, clear water. Sunlight glints in small points on the ripples, and amber light moves through the water below.
A hand holds a single rust-orange leaf at the surface of dark, clear water. Sunlight glints in small points on the ripples, and amber light moves through the water below.

Other Bodies is a creative health practice, not therapy. Nothing here is a treatment, an assessment, or clinical advice. If you are in distress, please reach someone who can help now: in British Columbia, 310-6789 (no area code); anywhere in Canada, call or text 9-8-8.