There have been periods when I would have said that life was simply beautiful. These days,
however, I’d define life as challenging, with beautiful aspects. Why? There’s a steady barrage of
controversy and negativity. Just read the newspaper, watch the online briefs or nightly
newscasts. Observe and absorb the callousness and insanity. Bemoan more wars, heightening
poverty and famine. Look around at personal losses and disappointments. Hour by hour, day by
day, it seems a battle has been instigated to render our hearts and souls unprotected. Yet, still,
a shield, formed by a plethora of acts of kindness and generosity; tremendous peace keeping
and humanitarian efforts; creative genius and iconic artistic talent; and stories of great love,
allows us to remain intact. As I travel, there is sanctuary in such testimonies taken from people
and places around the world. Come with me:

He had despaired for three months. The world had assessed the situation as bleak. The 18
year-old son of Uruguayan Artist Carlos Páez Vilaró was lost in the Andes, along with 44 other
passengers and crew members of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571. Carlos Miguel, member of the
Old Christians Club Rugby Team, was one of 16 survivors of the 1972 plane crash that
spellbound the world. Praying, hoping, and assisting from Chile, Vilaró was the parent who
anxiously read the list of survivors to loved ones and to all, reserving the full list while reading
names one by one. Thank God! Carlos Miguel was number five. The movie, Alive tells this
story of tragedy and endurance.

Calling it a “living sculpture,” Casapueblo in Punta Ballena, Uruguay is a perpetual tribute to the
fatherly love, admiration and gratitude Vilaró had for his son. Affected for many years by the
magnitude of this ordeal, he delved into creating this extension of his summer home and
workshop, resulting in a white-washed, cement and stucco structure resembling a massive
bird’s nest: Minus straight lines. Atop the cliffs. Overlooking the Atlantic. He said, “I apologize
for being as free as an oven-bird” (a Hornero” which uses used mud to shape a multi-billeted
retreat). He continued his labor of love until Casapueblo became 50 apartments, 20 rooms and
suites, a museum, a restaurant, bar and more. Externally modeled after Santorini and Gaudi’s
Park Güell, the memorial had been expanded over nearly four decades.

My visit was a tremendous experience in itself. Reflecting the powerful colors of Picasso, Dalí
influences and Afro-Uruguayan cultural heritage, Vilaró achieves an authentic vibe, signaling
the preciousness of life. And, in these moments, in this place, I felt so fortunate to be a parent.
Parental love can never be surrendered.

​

If I mentioned the name, Pierre Bergé, I’m not sure how many would know it, unless I aligned it
with that of Yves Saint Laurent. In Letters to Yves, compiled after Yves’ 2008 death, Pierre
expresses what it was like to experience one of the most intense, all-encompassing and eternal
loves and partnerships. So much so that he was consumed by it and said that he found nothing
truly motivating but that. YSL was the muse, the creator, the icon and soulmate- Pierre, the
mega millionaire, tycoon, patron of the arts and philanthropist. Their bond is forever affirmed
by the YSL Haute Couture House, since 1961; Foundation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent;
Musée YSL-Paris; Jardin Majorelle, Musée Berber, and Pierre Bergé-YSL Musée Marrakech. I
immersed myself in a couple of exhibits of YSL collections in the Paris museum and my
perspective is that his work is unconceivably imaginative and the designs fodder for dreams.

I’ll never be able to forget the deep passion and connectedness rooted in Letters to Yves: “To
love you, I need only to forget everything, which I’ve never stopped doing… Love is what makes
me live. It’s the only thing that makes me work. It made me become what I am today.” A
forever match.

A massive bronze Queen Esther sculpture is anchored atop a black Cadillac sedan. The Rainy
Day Taxi in the main courtyard of Funacio Gala Salvatore Dalí’s Dalí Theatre-Museum has foggy
windows, rain and extended umbrellas inside. Shapely gold figurines on high and all around
seemingly signal “hail to the queen.” Trajan’s Victory Column hoists a would-be freed
Michelangelo-like slave. Above, golden crutches support Gala’s Boat from which gigantic tears
are falling. What do these Dalí creations symbolize? Who really is the queen? How does one
interpret the mind of an individualist? These are the questions that my son and I debated with
the guide as we viewed and analyzed the treasures throughout this museum in Figueres, Spain.
I can tell you further scrutiny will be required!

In 53 years of togetherness, the Dalí couple produced some of the world’s most ingenious
surrealistic mixed-media masterpieces. Dalí, completely dominated and driven by adoration,
love and passion for his wife Gala, expressed his desire, personal fears, dreams, self-imposed
hallucinations and paranoia in extraordinary, ambiguous, and bizarre images, sculptures and
jewels. In Figueres, Galatea of Spheres (in reference to Gala and a mythological sea nymph);
Gala Contemplating the Mediterranean Sea which morphs into Abraham Lincoln; Gala with Two
Lamb Chops Balanced on Her Shoulders… Dalí obsessively painted his queen hundreds of times.
The museum, the Dalí Jewels (Dalí-Joyas), The Salvatore Dalí House-Museum, Gala Dalí Castle
and The Dalinian Triangle are all in deference to Gala. His words: “I polished Gala to make her
shine, to make her as happy as possible. I took better care of her than myself, because without
her, it was all over.”

She, on the other hand, was considered by some a “gold digger”- driven by ambitiousness,
unscrupulous and shrewd. But, their bond was welded and their spirits were intertwined.

Strange as this was, Gala inspired and produced a genius, one of the world’s greatest creators.
What an intrigue!

Some people don’t believe in miracles but, I do. There are the kinds of miracles that I learned
about in Fátima, one of the largest catholic pilgrimage locations. You may remember from a
previous post, that three child shepherds witnessed apparitions of the Virgin Mary during 1917,
revealing secrets pertaining to World War I & II; the rise and fall of communism; and, the
attempt on Pope Paul II’s life. These visions, endorsed by the Pope, were followed shortly by
the “Miracle of the Sun,” achieved by Our Lady of Fátima in a crowd of nearly 40,000 people,
cementing their piousness. Beyond Fátima, there were the miracles of Carlo Acutis who died in
2006 but, not before performing two, later recognized by Pope Francis- the healing of a
Brazilian child with a birth defect and of an Italian woman with a traumatic brain injury. He was
canonized in April 2025.

There is nothing like a visit to Fátima to restore your faith in humanity and spirituality. On the
other hand, there are often miracles that bring wondrous circumstances to daily life: A healthy
person who is 117 years old; a loved one having defied death after a life-threatening accident; a
better life after heart ache. All miracles within themselves.

These days, there is a lot of chatter to decipher. We all need a break from the challenges before
us. Why not deflect to positivity and inspiration? In Porto, I could hear the voice of Erica Badu
singing Rim Shot over the loudspeaker blaring from the antique bookstore and bar, Livraria da
Baixa. After getting a glass of wine and claiming an outside table, I pulled out my copy of My
Voice Because Of You, by Pedro Salinas, and began to enjoy its exquisiteness. In those
heartbeats, I felt, oh, how beautiful this is. Sanctuary.