Memory
Creativity
Service
Balance
I believe to do good healing work requires an honest and trusting therapeutic relationship. This includes you, the client, getting to know me, your therapist, in an authentic way. There are many ways to get to know me. For example, I could tell you about my love of science fiction, swimming, and the forest. Or I could tell you how the two distinct cultures in my family have led to a love for all things food related and made me very good at playing Taboo (shouting required). Yet, I think the best way to know me is to know the values I live by. I’m often asked why I am a therapist and what motivates me to do this work. The answer is a deep commitment to the values you see below.
Memory
The honoring of one’s past, their ancestors, and the events that came before them. Memory is quite literally carried in our genes, and our own experiences and our loved ones experiences shape those genes even further. I believe in the value of remembering these experiences, honoring them, and learning from them. For myself, this is remembering the two sides of my family and their immigration stories, one side immigrating from Mexico and the other from Italy. Both sides of my family came to this country with hopes for better lives and I am the product of past dreams realized through generational work and living. Memory also presents as our remembrance of past events and their effect on the present, both on an individual and communal level. I recognize the importance of history as storyteller of the human condition and a contextualizer of the present. Through memory, I feel humbly connected to what it means to be human.
Creativity
We are all fluent in creativity. I was fortunate to connect with my creative self at an early age. I have been making art (acrylic, charcoal, graphite, watercolor, collage, photography, ceramics, plaster… the list goes on) for almost 20 years. Through this practice, I have experienced the power of the creative process for self-reflection and growth. I approach the creative process as an exercise in curiosity and willingness. I also learned how fear, manifested as the self-critic and the judgements of “good” and “bad” art can stifle the creative process. I reject that art is only for the chosen “talented.” I also believe that through the creative process, we can learn and practice skills that can translate into other areas of our lives for the better. Humanity has been making art for hundreds of thousands of years; it goes to the core of what it means to be human. We are all artists, we all are creative, and we are all capable.
Service
I believe we are all connected and rely on each other for support. In this respect, we all serve each other. Through service to others and to community, we find ourselves. For me, service allows me connect with the best version of myself and help contribute and build up the community I so strongly love. I do my best to practice compromise, curiosity, humility, and self-reflection in all areas of life. I am humbled and grateful for the privilege to learn from others.
