To love and matter

It’s been a while since my last post, and I apologize for the abrupt disruption to what used to be regular postings and stories. My life took a somewhat transcendental turn during this past hurricane season, and with a heavy heart I made the decision to postpone my ventures in writing to devote my free time to restoration efforts in Puerto Rico. It was a critical time where I felt my grief needed to be expressed through action, therefore many of my other personal projects suffered as well.

However, the show must go on, and through these past few months of "silence" I’ve been able to reignite the fire of love for my craft and love for the voices I give life to through my narratives. It did not come easy… but I found the magic has been in the small details: gifts from friends that cherish my creativity, love letters from Nature, Latin American poetry, family, and a deep appreciation of the happiness that comes from pursuing what fills my heart with joy, regardless of the audience or the perceptions people have of me.

Much happened during the past three months. I summited Mt. Kilimanjaro and spent five whole days animal-scouting in East Africa’s most beautiful (and wonderfully diverse) savannahs, was interviewed for a women’s hiking podcast, appeared on major Virginia news channels (more than once!), was present for the birth of my first niece, spent 4 weeks of volunteer service in different parts of Puerto Rico, got engaged, and more personal matters were thought of in preparation for this new year of adventures. All in all, I’ve understood that life is short, time is unrecoverable, ideas will find a way to become (be it through me or someone else if I ignore them), and the essence of existence is to love and matter. And that is exactly what I plan to do this year, love, and matter.

I want this site to serve that purpose, because all in all, it's had that purpose all along. However, to make it more official, I've worked to re-brand SOLA as a communal space to share content related to solo travel, a space to cherish and promote female empowerment, and an avenue for us all to become agents of change in our communities. It'll be a lot of work, but I've never been more convinced about what I want - or am supposed - to do, and I'm all in. Read more about it here.

So it’s a given, there’s a lot to write about, but there will be time for that. In the meantime, think about the three new pillars of the blog and how they can be connected to serve the same purpose. Think about what pulls you towards [solo] travel, how you've felt empowered by it, and using that empowerment, how do you think you and we, together, can make this world a better place. If you've never solo traveled, think about a moment of pure exhilaration given an empowering event in your life, and think about committing to helping other less fortunate people light that same fire within them. I've got ideas, but I'd love to hear (or read) what you think about this, so comment below or e-mail me using the link at the bottom of this page. I have a feeling this is the start of something beautiful.

I got engaged to my best friend on New Year's Day at the perfect spot, Jobos Beach. More to come on this and many other amazing events!