Letter to Gregor Samsa

By Yashila Vikas, BA Prog. (Psychology + English)

Edited by: Vasvi Singhal

Dear Gregor,

I hope this letter finds you well, despite your inability to respond to this in your given condition. Gregor, I write to you to let you know that my heart physically ached as I plunged into your troubled mind, how it must have been to wake up one day and find yourself to be someone and something else, must have been very confusing and frightening.

What really saddened me was how your family abandoned you. Their love, just like the fruit that infected your neck, once nourishing, now became a wound. Their gratitude turned into resentment, their love into an obligation. They left you alone like throwing away a broken clock that stops ticking. Even though your body changed, you remained the same, Gregor. When your body underwent metamorphosis, your only concern was how you would provide for your family. I saw through your struggle and felt heartbroken over how you must be secretly hearing your family's conversations from the little gaps.

I want to remind you. You are more than what they see. Your thoughts wander and extend beyond the walls of your bedroom. You will be remembered as a man who worked tirelessly for his family; you are not just an insect. This merciless abandonment is cruelty against you.

Let this letter stand as proof that even if the world doesn't, someone sees beyond your shell. Gregor, your soul remains your own.

With compassion and love,

Yashila