Havana is just as magical as I remembered.

At night, crowds linger along the Malacom,

an ocean wall that protects the city from storms.

As the waves crash against it, lovers, philosophers, poets, musicians, fishermen, and students

discuss politics and philosophy and the debate about capitalism and socialism.

I also see how people struggle here, really struggle.

But I feel a confidence in people too,

and I sometimes just sit and observe their laughter,

how they use their voice, their hands. I try to soak it all up.

Leela Day is an award-winning journalist and co-host of the beloved podcast, The Stoop.

In today's story, Leela takes us to a pivotal time in her life when living abroad in Cuba.

There, she discovers that having the courage to examine our own imperfect stories can connect us deeply, and how in finding our authentic voice, we find our authentic power.

In this series, we combine immersive first-person stories,

breathtaking music, and mindfulness prompts

so that we may see our lives reflected back to us in other people's stories.

And that can lead to improvements in our own inner lives.

From Wait What, this is meditative story.

I'm Rohan and I'll be your guide. The body relaxed, the body breathing.

Your senses open, your mind open, meeting the world. A beam of sunlight shines down through the panes of the glass ceiling.

It's like a spotlight on me,

where I sit at my desk in an almost empty room.

Gorgeous plants surround the office lobby.

...