Permission Granted
It took me a long time to say this to myself: "Yes! You can do this. Write without an editor, without any publication in mind. Just write for yourself."
Have you ever felt that way? Like something inside you is asking you to take it's desire seriously, but you are so used to measuring yourself by external sources - likes, shares, supervisor approval, analytics - that you quickly silence the wisdom inside you?
What now constitutes The Micromoments Project was my direct attempt to challenge that fear.
This project of travel, art and writing is a gift of permission I had to grant myself. I realized no dream job could do it. And waiting for someone else to say "go ahead" was something I had become tired of in an information saturated world. After years or writing for the sake of work (I had spent about a decade in community non-profit journalism, and mission-driven communications), I wanted to write with my own voice as guide.
Oddly enough at the same time this internal storm to break free was brewing, I had the opportunity to travel internationally for leisure for the first time in my life. Personally, things were not good. A strange, but fruitful cocktail in hindsight.
That first trip in November 2024 to Southeast Asia and India (the latter of which I had visited growing up as I have family there) brought writing back to me as a way to dance with the world, listen to it, question it, adore it, and locate myself across borders and shifting identities.
As a Third Culture, 2nd generation, diaspora kid, growing up in the United States identity, culture, migration and history (and its power dynamics) have always played a visceral part in my life. Add to this a love of learning about different places and cultures and I found that my writing, my voice, and a spark of excitement came back to me when I journaled at the end of each day, with specific attention to sensory detail and specific interactions no matter how brief. Before I knew it, I found myself open and ready for these moments, so much so that there was too much to write at the end of the day.
A few trips later, I started to add watercolor sketches, as ugly as they were, and an even deeper layer of presence arose. I would paint in coffee shops, or try to draw what I saw before me, leading to little encounters, the kind that make your heart glow no matter how simple they are.
The Micromoments essays emerged almost organically once I would return home and let my journal of moments and reflections simmer.
These essays are my celebration of the world, of the beauty and sometimes the weight - that lies in the mundane. They are a celebration of normal people and the shared humanity that delights me every time I have an interaction. In a time of escalating strife and cross-border conflict, of more media reports that highlight division, it is these moments that feel like a steady anchor. No matter where you are, there is someone to witness, someone to plant a seed of learning, someone to remind you of the power of little things.
What you'll find here are unfiltered, pondering, place-based essays each rooted in a defining moment or reflection. They range from topics such as the environment, to colonial history, from intergenerational food culture, arts and heritage, and navigating identity, to quiet moments in the ocean.
If our journeys have crossed paths, - hello! and if you'd like to stay a while and breathe into the little moments together a little longer, I would be delighted and honored to share my little slice of life with you :-)
