Students from Ripoll have won the Joan Triadú literary awards, presenting powerful stories that explored complex themes of identity, language, and mental health. The awards ceremony took place recently at the Sant Pere church, near the monastery in Ripoll.
The competition involved students from seventeen schools across the Ripollès region, with winners announced in various age categories. The winning entries offered candid perspectives on personal struggles and societal observations.
Exploring Dual Identity
Malak, a sixteen-year-old student, won in her category for her story "Dues ribes i un sol pont" (Two Shores and One Bridge). Her work explored the experience of living between Catalan and Arab cultures.
"Sometimes, I wake up at night and wonder what language my dreams are in," Malak wrote. "Are they in Arabic when I dream of my grandparents? Or are they in Catalan when I dream of tomorrow's exams?"
Malak's story also described the discomfort she felt when neighbours expressed surprise at her excellent Catalan. "As if living here, growing up here, and crying here doesn't automatically give me the right to feel the words as my own," she wrote. She also recounted moments on the bus when speaking Arabic with friends led to stares, as if their language was a "silent invasion" reminding others that they were no longer just serving coffee but occupying space.
"My language," Malak stated, "has two irreconcilable flavours: the sweetness of mint tea and the salt of the land that welcomes me. And sometimes, from trying so hard to speak both at once not to disappoint anyone, I find myself locked in a deep silence, the only place where I don't have to choose who I am."
A Story of Silent Pain
In the twelve-year-old category, Carla won for her story "La nena que no plorava" (The Girl Who Didn't Cry). The narrative followed Mireia, a girl who, as a child, did not cry or laugh because she had not been taught how. When she asked about her father, her mother would say, "Don't ask things that hurt."
Carla's story, as detailed in the printed booklet distributed at the event, revealed Mireia's discovery at eight years old that her father had died by suicide before she was born. Her mother described him as "weak" and unable to cope. At ten, Mireia largely stopped speaking, offering only minimal responses like "Yes," "No," or "I don't know."
As Mireia grew, she became a quiet, unnoticed presence. At thirteen, she started self-harming "just to feel something." Her mother discovered this, reacting with shame rather than pain. At fifteen, Mireia attempted to end her life but was found in time. She was treated, medicated, and sent to a centre where she met other young people facing similar struggles. There, Mireia began writing stories, which were often sad, without clear endings or hope. She found writing to be a way to express herself, a form of crying without tears.
At eighteen, Mireia left the centre and studied psychology, wanting to understand why pain often goes unseen. By twenty, she was working in a centre herself. Now thirty, Mireia lives in a small flat filled with books. She has no parents or photos, but she keeps a notebook. Each year, on the anniversary of her suicide attempt, she writes a new sentence. This year, she wrote: "I still don't know how to cry. But I no longer want to disappear."
The awards highlight the profound insights and emotional depth of young writers in the Ripollès region, encouraging them to continue sharing their stories.
