Ecsis

a hand holding a fossil

Ecsis

n.
the haunting sense of mystery infused into certain random details that beckons you to wonder how it ended up here at this point in time—marveling at a patch of white on a dog’s chest, a bubble trapped in an old window, a glimpse of Saturn’s rings shivering in a telescope lens—knowing that behind the thing itself is a long chain of causes and effects that veers off into the shadows of prehistory, anchored somewhere near the dawn of time, even though the end result is somehow right there in front of you, shimmering in place.

Indonesian eksis, to exist, to be. Pronounced “ek-sis.”

Ellipsism

a hand clawing at a wall

Knellish

a blurry image of a person lying on a bed

Rialtoscuro

a blurry image of a light source

Rookish

a stone tower with a person seated on top

Rubatosis

Cover image for the Rubatosis word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Inerrata

a hand holding a broken cup

Heartmoor

a campfire with a kettle many small logs

Heartworm

Cover image for the Heartworm word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Ameneurosis

Cover image for the Ameneurosis word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Dorgone

Cover image for the Dorgone word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Allope

Cover image for the Allope word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Hobsmacked

Cover image for the Hobsmacked word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Wellium

Cover image for the Wellium word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows