Riding the Waves

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I love to swim. But I used to have this recurring dream where I was on vacation and as I’m getting ready to leave to the airport, I realize that I didn’t get the chance to swim in the ocean… I’d get very close but I never got in. Then I’d wake up frustrated like “can’t I just control my dream so I can swim, please?” Then after a moment I’d realize, “Oh, this means I’m not enjoying the journey. Got it.

Everything has been happening so fast lately and I’ve been trying to remind myself to enjoy it. I’m not just talking about the crazy-incredible-amazingness of my mini memoir being published in Eat Pray Love Made Me Do It (which I’m still processing and doing cartwheels over), but also as an actress.

You know how I’m always talking about storytelling as a way to touch lives? Well, I’m super proud to be a part of this new media series: U N D E T E C T A B L E.

 

When someone you admire tells you they were thinking of you when they wrote the part — a character that is just spot-on, in a series that is so well done — there is no higher compliment. And can I just say, I lead a meditation in this episode! It was totally meant to be.

Created by Todd Flaherty and directed by Sam T. Wilson, the series seeks to end the stigma and normalize the perception of people living with HIV. Using art to raise awareness, to tell a story that will really move people and start a dialogue, that’s what this work is all about.

The first three episodes are live and you can check them out over at UndetectableTheSeries.com. I’m honored to be doing work that truly matters to me (I appear as Claudia in Episode 2) and to work with people who are just so very talented.

 

Riding the Waves - Lisann Valentin

 

Things are still moving really quickly: appearing on red carpets; being interviewed for magazines and for TV; And shooting another new media series this coming weekend… it can be beautifully overwhelming.

Yet, somehow I feel like I’m swimming… I’m riding the waves in between two worlds… the one where everything is “normal” and the other where the things I’ve only dreamed of doing as an artist are becoming my normal everyday experiences.

It’s no wonder that in my most recent dream there was an ocean in front of me. It was a sunny day but the tide was strong. A man was beside me and He told me not to be afraid. So I got in. When the waves came, I didn’t see Him anymore, but I knew He was there. Suddenly everything was calm. I felt really peaceful while I looked out at the world in front of me, changed yet somehow the same.

— Posted on March 14, 2016 at 7:35 am

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