"Aftermath" by Olivia Zhang is one of the most beautifully written and vivid pieces I have ever read. She captured unbelievable amounts of emotion and description, that made me understand exactly what every character was going through. Visiting a village as a college student, Caroline is swept up in a massive and destructive tsunami. Lines like "I imagined they had sharp watery talons like a predator waiting to strike" (about the waves" and "Gulls squawked, their wings useless in the sudden gusts of cold wind." Really set the scene and paint an image in my mind. The piece almost sounded like non fiction; like the writer had experienced the whole thing first hand. The profound ending hit me like the tsunami she describes so well, and leaves a long lasting impression on the reader, and ties up the story in a beautiful way.