Overview
Writer & MFA Candidate in Creative Nonfiction
I write about place, displacement, and belonging. After twenty-five years of teaching literature across four countries, Ecuador, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States, I’ve spent my life immersed in other people’s stories. Now, I’m learning to tell my own.
My work explores what it means to live between cultures and to build homes in temporary places. I question what even defines a home: Is it the place we’re born, the country whose passport we carry, or the accumulated rooms and cities where we’ve learned to belong? After decades of moving across continents, I’m fascinated by how we bring home with us and what we lose each time we leave. I’m particularly drawn to narratives about childhood, trauma, and resilience, shaped by my years as a Court-Appointed Special Advocate for children in foster care and my training in trauma-informed care.
Currently, I’m pursuing an MFA in Creative Nonfiction at the University of Nebraska Omaha, where I’m working on a collection of essays about international teaching and cultural adaptation. I have a forthcoming memoir, Lessons (Un) Planned: A Decade of Travel, Teaching, and Transformation, that chronicles my years in the Middle East.
My background as an IB Literature examiner has taught me to read closely and critically across genres, periods, and cultural contexts. I bring that same attention to my own work, asking what stories need to be told and how to tell them with honesty and care. I speak Spanish and have spent significant time living in Latin America and the Middle East, experiences that continue to shape my perspective and voice.
When I’m not writing, you’ll find me reading, practicing yoga (I’m a Registered Children’s Yoga Teacher with a trauma-informed focus), or hiking the trails near my home in Southern California. Sometimes I even drag my son, husband, and two dogs along with me.
Education & Certifications
My formal education spans curriculum development, educational technology, and creative writing. Still, my most profound learning has happened outside the classroom—through living in four countries, navigating unfamiliar languages and customs, and listening to the stories of students, colleagues, and foster children whose lives have taught me more than any textbook could.
I’m a lifelong learner who believes that education happens everywhere: in international schools where I’ve taught students from over 60 nationalities, in yoga studios where I’ve learned trauma-informed care practices, in courtrooms where I’ve advocated for vulnerable children, and in the daily work of adapting to new places and perspectives. This commitment to continuous growth has shaped both my teaching and my writing.
