This artwork is my personal visualization of the daily endurance required to live with chronic tinnitus. For me, the screaming purple bird creature acts as a striking personification of that phantom sound—loud, aggressive, and unyielding. It screams in pain, because it is not just an external enemy. It is a part of me, right behind my ears at the back of my head, sharing my own exhaustion and distress.

I read a little bit about Stoicism lately. It teaches me to accept the creature, pain and all, rather than fighting it. While that inner part of me continues to scream, the meticulous, meditative process of creating this piece is my way of practicing unwavering discipline. The noise and the pain may be there, but I choose how I respond to them.