Exulansis

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Exulansis

n.
the tendency to give up trying to talk about an experience because people are unable to relate to it—whether through envy or pity or mere foreignness—which allows it to drift away from the rest of your story, until it feels out of place, almost mythical, wandering restlessly in the fog, no longer even looking for a place to land.

Latin exulans, exile, wanderer, derived from the Latin name of the Wandering Albatross, diomedea exulans, who spend most of their life in flight, rarely landing, going hours without even flapping their wings. The albatross is a symbol of good luck, a curse, and a burden, and sometimes all three at once. Pronounced “ek-suh-lan-sis.”

Rubatosis

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Nighthawk

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

Evertheless

a person floating in water

Vellichor

shelves with many books stacked and organized

Nodrophobia

close-up of a stained shirt

Punt Kick

Cover image for the Punt Kick word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows