You think you’re just grabbing a cup of coffee. But if you sit long enough at the café on the corner of Kalayaan, you’ll notice something different. Between shots of espresso and warm banter with regulars, Paulo flips through his sketchpad, quietly painting moments from his day.
He told me, “I see faces all day—I can’t help but remember them.” What started as a way to decompress after work has now filled an entire shelf of journals. People’s gestures, forgotten cups, a sleepy child on a chair—he paints them all. “Art just finds its way in,” he shrugged.
It reminded me that stories aren’t always loud. Sometimes they’re in the background, waiting to be seen. And sometimes, the guy making your coffee is also painting life as it happens.