Take Care Warnings: This episode includes mentions of sexual assault, trauma, grief, shame, and navigating harm in relationships. Please take care while listening.

Welcome back to Take Up Space. This season, we are passing the mic with intention and holding space for Black survivors to share their stories in their own words.

In this episode, we are honoured to hear from Alya, a poet, artist, and storyteller whose healing journey has been both tender and courageous. Alya reflects on the isolation that can follow harm, and the conscious choice it takes to keep living, keep creating, and keep choosing yourself again and again.

Through her story, Alya shares how self-expression has been a lifeline, from podcasting to writing to painting, and how faith with an asterisk has helped her expand her understanding of the divine beyond rigid walls. She describes healing like the sound of waves, a reminder that even when life crashes hard, it always finds its rhythm again.

Thank you for joining us, and for holding Alya’s story with care, softness, and deep respect.