Calista Robledo is a College student at St. Edwards University studying Writing and Rhetoric, and Catholic Studies. Born in Weslaco, Texas, Calista found a passion for the arts at a young age. Beginning with dance and slowly shifting towards writing. This is Calista’s first time in Paris, and below we talk about what it means to be a creative in Paris, and her influences.
Q: During your time in Paris, do you see it changing your perspective on the world?
A: I don’t know. It’s 5 weeks, the first week is almost over, and I don’t know if there’s enough time for me to change my perspective on the world. I do really like learning about cultural norms. And to say I adapt some of these cultural norms when I go home, I don’t know, like not eating breakfast? I’m a big breakfast girl, I love my eggs and toast with coffee before I head out.
Q: Now that you’re here, what’s your biggest takeaway from the whole thing so far?
A: To live in the moment, I’m someone who plans a lot. I like to look ahead. I’m very practical, but here it’s been the first time where I get out of bed and ask myself “what do I want to do today?” or plans will change in the middle of something and I’m like “okay cool, I guess were doing this now”. So definitely so far, I’m very grateful to have that opportunity to live in these moments, to do what I want, with whoever I want, and I get to do what I love, which is to write. I think it’s good to learn the cultural norms, but I don’t see it changing my perspective.
Q: Why Paris?
A: Why not Paris? That is the question.
Q: Why did you decide to take the Paris summer course instead of a full semester?
A: I applied for this program my freshman year, and I got accepted. So little 18-year-old me thought “ I’ll go abroad one summer and later on in college ill go for a full semester.” And I didn’t know if I wanted to come to Paris for a semester, but you know I just wanted to get my feet wet with a summer program. Obviously, that didn’t happen ( Because of Covid ) But I’m here now and I couldn’t be happier.
Q: What made you want to pursue creative writing?
A: I’ve always been very creative, when I was younger I danced. Since I was 3, all the way to the end of High-school. Ballet, Tap Jazz, all that stuff. Then I did theater for a long time. So I’ve always been very creative, and in high school, I got very interested in writing. It was really my English teacher. I just really found my voice in their classes, and it was weird because it was through these very academic essays and testing. And I really found joy in it.
Q: How do you think writing has impacted you, to who you are today?
A: I think writing has helped me identify my identity as an artist. Like I’ve been dancing since I was 3 years old, I’ve always had a love for the arts
Q: How do you think it affects your view on the world while being in Paris
A: At St. Edwards, in the writing department, they tell us “ write what you know” and “take the things you have knowledge of and write about that” and I think that has helped me a lot in being vulnerable. I don’t like being vulnerable at all, but when I write a play or a poem, and if it’s something about myself or about people in my life, that allows me to express vulnerability. But thinking about things outside of my life, like how I observe, I think of the phrase “life imitates art”. I think it just makes things nicer to experience.
Q: What is the meaning of life?
A: Experience, you just experience everything. I think Heaven is an option, maybe purgatory. That’s what I think is next. I took an existentialism class last semester, so the whole thing was like “there is no meaning”. That was a great class, loved it.