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Writing is a road to discovery. We make and find meaning through writing, language, and symbols, and we use these to communicate what we’ve discovered: knowledge, worlds, people, ourselves. We write through various modes of expression in the hopes of leaving an imprint on the world for others to discover.
Inventio is an online literary magazine that publishes these discoveries. Whether compositions of fiction, non-fiction, or poetry, we share what you create. Since its beginning in 2017, through York University’s Professional Writing Students’ Association, Inventio has been a platform for the literary talents of post-secondary students.
We publish three times each academic year: April 25, August 25, and November 25.
Inventio. We Are Writing.
Life is a series of choices falling into and out of our grasp—a powerful collection of possibilities. The pieces in this issue grapple with the choices that define our lives and remind us that the ability to choose is a privilege that may not extend to death and beyond.
Our fiction pieces remind us of the two biggest choices we must make in life: to remain passive observers or to become active participants. One piece offers us a glimpse into the choices that shaped a woman’s life, choices that were made for her, as she navigates through the many halls of the afterlife. In the second piece, a chance encounter provides a young woman with an opportunity to take fate into her own hands.
Our poetry pieces remind us that perception is a choice. One poem perfectly captures that how we choose to participate in life coincides with our perception of reality. Our second poem builds on those sentiments and reflects on the world that opens itself to us when we take a chance on the unknown—when we dare ourselves to step off the ledge.
Our non-fiction piece reflects on life and the possibility of an afterlife. This piece reminds us that sometimes we don’t have a choice in going down dangerous paths, but it also serves as a testimony of faith and prompts us to live as if each moment were our last.
We would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to our extraordinary contributors—Adam Dickson, Rys Zhu, Saige Severin, and Viki Posidis—for honouring us with their works. We hope you enjoy this issue.
— Written by Rebecca Wallace
Edited by Jessica Lappin, AEiC
We would like to begin by acknowledging the Indigenous Peoples of all the lands that we are on today. While we meet today on a virtual platform, we would like to take a moment to acknowledge the importance of the lands, on which we each call home. We do this to reaffirm our commitment and responsibility in improving relationships between nations and to improve our own understanding of local Indigenous peoples and their cultures.
York University’s land acknowledgement may not represent the territory that you are currently on, and we would ask that if this is the case, you take responsibility to acknowledge the traditional territory that you are on and its current treaty holders.
York University acknowledges its presence on the traditional territory of many Indigenous Nations. The area known as Tkaronto has been care taken by the Anishinabek Nation, the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, the Huron-Wendat. It is now home to many First Nation, Inuit and Métis communities.
We acknowledge the current treaty holders, the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation. This territory is subject of the Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, an agreement to peaceably share and care for the Great Lakes region.
From coast to coast to coast, we acknowledge the ancestral and unceded territory of all the Inuit, Métis, and First Nations people that call this land home. Please join us in a moment of reflection to acknowledge the effect of residential schools and colonialism on Indigenous families and communities and to consider how it is our collective responsibility to recognize colonial and arrivant histories and present-day implications in order to honour, protect, and sustain this land.
In recognizing that these spaces occupy colonized First Nations territories and out of respect for the rights of the Indigenous people, please look for, in your own way, to engage in a spirit of reconciliation and collaboration.