As I emerge from a prolonged stint of “creative stillness,” a phrase borrowed from Dhayana Alejandrina (to describe “writer’s block), I’ve come to understand that I can never truly write about an experience while it’s “still dark outside.” I named this platform “Muse by Midnight” because I “sparkle in the twilight;” expanding like a nyctinastic plant which moves, breathes and shifts according to a circadian rhythm that reacts in response to darkness. I am in sync with myself – and...

There’s an invisible thread connecting me to Andalusia… When I was a little girl, I spoke fluent Spanish and English. However, by the time I was five years old, no one else around me spoke the language so I lost the ability to speak Spanish. At times, I'm still able to understand small snippets of conversation, so of all the languages that I come into contact with, Spanish sounds (and feels) the most familiar. Years later, when I first began my...

Over the years, I’ve collected friends like souvenirs carefully selected before a departure. They’re living mementos of my travels and breathing snapshots of moments captured in time. Scattered across the world, we catch up when we can. It’s always nice to receive a “local’s tour” whenever you visit a faraway city, and I enjoy returning the favor when they come to mine. As a woman who often travels alone, remaining present and intentional in a world that demands hypervigilance can...