Well, hello again!

Welcome to our seventh issue — the second and last of my term as Editor-in-Chief. This term has been such a fruitful one. I am so proud of the growth this magazine has had within just these past couple of years. I’m also so grateful for the entire Common House team’s dedication to this publication, who have all put so much time into reading, editing, discussing, and promoting our submissions.

For the past couple days, I’ve been mulling over the pieces that we have here for you — trying to pin down the common themes and produce some cohesion in the form of order. But that’s the fun of an open-themed mag, and something that us English-major editor-nerds take pleasure in. So, I present to you Spring 2026: Issue 7 – What We Take With Us (& What We Leave Behind).”

This issue has a few common focuses, beginning with May Garner’s “Break the Surface.” This piece places reverence on history, patience, and trust, providing the launch point for taking in some of the heavier themes of this collection. We’re taken on a journey of temporal resonance, featuring corruption, growth, migration, and family ties — each piece providing us with something new to take hold of and reflect on. 

Arching over all of these works is the value of community, whether in the form of roommates, sisters, neighbours, family, or friends. It’s easy to lose sight of oneself in isolation, and it’s easy to isolate when faced with the current cultural overwhelm. This issue reminds us to connect with each other, check in, go outside, and put our trust in life, earth, and humanity. Through the act of creation, these authors and artists persist, connecting with us through their words, their loss. This is perseverance. In the words of our featured author, Suyi Okungbowa, “creativity or creation is never going to go away. It has never gone away. It has always survived the test of time.” So, thank you, contributors, for choosing to create, inspire, and be part of this collection.

And thank you, reader, for taking the time to read this little preliminary note. Your support is forever appreciated. 

I’ll be sticking around this summer to highlight our uOttawa talent before passing on the EIC torch in the Fall. I’m so excited to see what will come next for Common House in the 2026-27 year. I’ll always be cheering on this team.

Enjoy this issue,

Grace Wildman

Editor-in-Chief (for a short while more)