We are on a train north to Toledo, the chosen home of the artist, El Greco. Leaving the vibrancy of southern Spain’s Andulucia, we travel toward the land of Cervantes’ famous Don Quixote, a landscape now peppered with stainless steel…
#4 The Spanish Butterfly Blog: Yes, Thank You!
Cadiz, Spain hangs out into the Atlantic Ocean like a mitten on a string. Its narrow and winding cobblestone streets force all the cars to its edges leaving the old town as it has been for centuries – a pedestrian…
#3 The Spanish Butterfly Blog: Everyone Whom We Have Loved
The ancient coastal town of Cadiz, Spain feels like it’s in a time warp. Roman artifacts, narrow winding cobblestoned streets, wrought iron balconies, and antique churches create a sense of timelessness. The Phoencian fishermen who settled here in 800 BC…
#2 The Spanish Butterfly Blog: Holding Space for Pain
Ah Sevilla! The beautiful land of flamenco, polka dots, paella, sangria, orange trees, Moorish architecture, painted fans, and labyrinth-like streets. Oh how I love it! And during Easter Week, Seville is home to one of the largest Semana Santa celebrations…
#1 The Spanish Butterfly Blog: Expansion and Transformation
When I was 17, during the hot, hot summer of 1980, I left my hometown of Dallas, Texas with a group of students to live for 9 weeks in Segovia, Spain. Before I left, my mother said, “This trip is…
Searching for Silver
In March of 2020, life in Antigua, Guatemala (my new hometown) changed dramatically, as it did across the world. We went into a lockdown the likes of which no one had ever seen. Doors around the city were shut and…
Making Friends with Death
I recently attended a retreat the sole purpose of which was to meditate upon death. Gulp. Most people don’t really want to be on a first name basis with the grim reaper, if you know what I mean. And yet,…