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Points of failure: Adult costumes
Last month my niece snapped back at me for the first time. I was devastated. She’s five years old and just starting first grade. While on a video call, I may have lost some cool-uncle points by suggesting that she eat healthy snacks at school instead of Oreos. “You’re not my dad,” she pushed back. I recognized her defensiveness. As she grows, some of the baby innocence is lost and turns into personhood — with all its pros and cons. After that happened, I realized how I'd rece
3 hours ago2 min read
Week #28: Bravo
A trip to New York on a whim, a friend on two different stages, and closing the gap between what I say and what I do.
6 days ago1 min read
Week #27: Hijacking
September 7th - 12th. Getting called out by a 2000-year-old philosopher.
Sep 131 min read
Points of failure: Rushing back
My eagerness to make things work before they were ready created a bigger setback.
May 312 min read
Points of failure: The full view
In April I completed something that started twenty years ago.
Apr 263 min read
Week #11: Leaving (March 29th - April 4th)
By the time anyone reads this I will be on a 30 hour drive. This was the week before leaving on a Western Canada tour and naturally, I was busy getting it all ready. I filed paperwork, sorted merchandise, ran logistics, did rehearsals, all while releasing and promoting a new song, and working a full-time job. As the days got nearer I started to feel anxious about the less enjoyable parts of tour: crossing borders, cramped hotel rooms, missing my partner, the lack of sleep, an
Apr 51 min read
Week #10: The merry-go-round
I came into the week on a high. An album launch for my band went smoothly. By midday on Monday, 100 of our vinyl records were traveling to supporters around the world. What a privilege to be invited into someone’s home in that way. I was still riding that high when I got on a call with my writing coach later in the day. We were going over her edits on the latest draft of a story I’ve been working on since November. I had been excited for her approval since I submitted the
Mar 291 min read
Points of failure: Learning to listen
On noticing the signals from within
Mar 223 min read
Week #9: How much is enough? (March 9nd - 15th)
Since January, I’ve been writing a new short story. My schedule has been waking up weekdays at 4:30am to exercise for an hour then write 90 minutes. On weekends I do 2 to 4 hour writing blocks. This past Monday was the deadline to submit it to my editor. In this last week of writing, I had to find an extra gear: I added evening writing sessions on top of my job, gym, band rehearsals, and time with my partner. I showed up every day, whether I wanted to or not. I’d been wonderi
Mar 151 min read
Paúl Rivera Melo
Paúl Rivera Melo is a Dominican-born, Chicago-based touring musician and writer of essays and short fiction. With roots in the Caribbean, his work draws from the melodies and vocabulary of the region, while using the unique scope of his diaspora experience to craft stories of striving and survival.
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