I am an author, a lover of art, nature and travel, but most importantly am an avid believer that only this current moment is our life -  which is why I created Ciao Zen. These passing reflections, channeled through nature, writing and creating, help me find and maintain my balance. I would like Ciao Zen to lead as a source of encouragement to find solace in reflection and moving beyond self-imposed walls in our lives.

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I grew up between the United States and Italy, traveling back and forth numerous times a year, splitting time between families, cultures, and friends. Since my stay in both places was never permanent, friend groups were harder to form, and long-lasting relationships were difficult to develop. This constant change and sense of misplacement forced me to be best friends with myself - to enjoy my own company so much, that the company of others would be an added plus, but never expected.

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This sense of solitude that filled my days developed a curiosity towards the human condition of which I constantly sought answers. I would sit and watch people and how they interacted with one another. I tried to understand the hurt and pain that humans felt, and yearned to find similarities in the underlying cause of it all. Through this inward traveling, I concluded that there are common threads of human nature, independent of our sex, religion, race, or class, that link us in a way that dissipates loneliness. There is a magic in the interconnected nature of it all, and these commonalities connect us to people we have never met.

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I'd like Ciao Zen to be a reminder that maybe the magic isn't in the big moments that we anticipate as life changing, but is actually in the small things - in the acts that we least expect have the ability to change us. I hope the words or images here move you to create something for yourself or help you feel less alone in what you think and feel.

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Thank you for reading about me and Ciao Zen. I truly appreciate it very much! Please do reach out to me with absolutely any questions or suggestions - I would love to hear from you.