The Unspoken Colors of Courage

There are some conversations that leave you quiet for hours after. Not because they were hard to have—but because they gave language to things you’ve carried silently for years.

That’s what this one was.

When Dionne Woods invited me onto her Paint Talks podcast, I thought we’d talk about art. And we did—finger painting, mixed media, the unpredictable joy of mess-making.

But what emerged was something deeper: a conversation about breaking generational silence, reclaiming creative voice, and finding freedom in the very acts that once felt forbidden.

We spoke about parenting, pain, patriarchy, and the ripple effect of small gestures. We shared the ways our creativity saved us—how it gave shape to stories too big for words and offered refuge when the world felt unsafe.

And we talked about kindness. The kind that lives in handmade tokens, passed from hand to hand, stranger to stranger. The kind that says: you matter—not because you’re productive or perfect, but because you’re here.

This is one of the most vulnerable, honest conversations I’ve ever had on a public platform.

I’m grateful to Dionne for holding space so gently. And I’m sharing it here in its fullness, not as a promotional link, but as a record of truth-telling. Of voice-claiming. Of presence.

Listen below:

And if something in this conversation resonates, I hope you’ll share it—not to boost numbers, but to spark the kind of connection that reminds us: we’re not alone.