A Voyage Through the Gyri and Sulci
Inside our calvarium
Lies within
Our gray and white matter
A vast ocean of truth.
Strings of events
With fine resolution
Imprinted onto billions of cells
Conveniently condensed.
Giving birth
Maturing
Living
Dying.
Born again,
Again, and again.
Let us appreciate
The natural landscape of our gyri and sulci
Without censoring
Embarrassing laughs
Enchanting glances
Self-actualized dreams
Warm hugs
Unfulfilled wishes
Lost souls.
Identity
Is quite a funny thing—
Tied to the self
Never separated from others
Intertwined, yet detached.
The cruelty of time
Degenerates
Dulls and dampens details.
After all —
No one wishes
Their memories
Stained by forgetfulness.
Does it not reassure you
That history is full of life?
The past
Always pregnant with the future?
And, despite our temporal presence—
Reminiscence
Reflections
Recollections
May never be destroyed.
Saman is a Doctor of Medicine and Master of Surgery candidate at McGill, published researcher, classical-pianist-in-training, two-time TEDx speaker, and UC Berkeley honors graduate. His two incoming books are “Neurobiology of Creativity: Music Medicine and Self-Expression in Art” with Cambridge University Press (2024) and “COVID-19 Contextualized: A Mosaic of Interdisciplinary Works Through a Canadian Lens” with University of Manitoba Press (2025). In 2022, he was selected as one of the youngest Finalists for the Top 25 Immigrants in Canada.
Follow Saman on Twitter @saman_arfaie