Dartmouth College

As dawn breaks, sleep pulls at me, unrelenting. My eyes droop, as I struggle to break free. To combat this, I sit with my back propped against the wall. I close my eyes against hostile rays of sunshine and silently repeat my private mantra, which slowly dissolves into its constituent rhythms and vibrations. My mind begins to fade, as consciousness begins to transport and transcend. It's as if I'm in a dark elevator, falling slowly; but instead of vertigo, my brain feels like it's taking a nice, soothing bath. Sometimes, surreal visions surface: phosphenes, sinuous kaleidoscopes, streams of…