About
Dilcia Estela Cantarero, writing as la vie de Estela, is a mother, poet, and author whose work is born from love, memory, and the journey through grief. Inspired by the life and spirit of her daughter Karolina, her writing transforms the quiet pain of loss into poetry, reflections, and stories that resonate with anyone who has loved deeply.
Her books — The Two Worlds of Estela, The Unspoken Words of Karolina, and The Enigma of Karolina’s Silence — explore themes of healing, resilience, and the unspoken words that shape our lives. Through her heartfelt prose and poetry, Estela gives voice to emotions often left unsaid, preserving memories while guiding readers toward hope and understanding.
Beyond writing, Estela creates spaces for reflection and connection through workshops, readings, and discussions, offering support to those navigating grief, motherhood, and life’s most profound challenges. Her work celebrates the enduring bonds of love, the beauty in memory, and the strength that emerges even in the quietest, most sorrowful moments.
Discover her books, join her readings, and explore a journey of remembrance, healing, and hope.
Featured Work
The Unspoken Words of Karolina
There are moments in life so profound, so fleeting, that they leave us forever changed. There are lives so bright, so full of love and promise, that when they end too soon, the echo of their presence lingers in everything around us. The Unspoken Words of Karolina is a tribute to one such life — a daughter, an artist, a soul whose voice was cut short but whose spirit continues to speak in the quiet, tender spaces of memory.
This book is born from love, grief, and the desire to preserve what was never fully spoken. It is a collection of poetry and reflections that carry the weight of absence yet shimmer with the light of remembrance. Within these pages, readers will find the thoughts, feelings, and emotions that were never voiced aloud — the whispers of a daughter, the unspoken confessions, the fleeting moments of laughter, tenderness, and creativity that defined Karolina’s life. These words, though unuttered in life, now live on in print, offering testimony, solace, and connection to anyone who has ever loved deeply and lost profoundly.
At its core, this book is a mother’s heart in motion. It is the journey of navigating the uncharted terrain of grief, of learning to honor absence while celebrating presence. Every poem, every reflection, every fragment of thought is both an act of remembrance and a form of healing. Through these unspoken words, a daughter continues to teach, inspire, and touch lives. Through them, her memory remains active, breathing, and luminous, refusing to be confined to silence or sorrow.
The chapters of this book are woven with layers of emotion — loss, longing, hope, and tenderness. Each poem is a snapshot, a window into Karolina’s world, as seen through the eyes of a mother who continues to carry her in every heartbeat. The reflections explore the complexities of grief: the anger that can surge unexpectedly, the moments of quiet despair, the weight of what could have been, and the delicate, fragile beauty that emerges when love persists even after physical separation. These writings remind readers that grief is not a single emotion, but a spectrum — a vast, uncharted landscape of feeling where every tear, memory, and thought matters.
The Unspoken Words of Karolina is also an invitation to all who read it: to reflect on their own lives, their own losses, and the silent conversations they carry within. It asks readers to consider what remains unsaid in their relationships, what gestures of love may have gone unnoticed, and how even in absence, connection endures. This is a universal truth hidden in personal experience — that love cannot be measured solely by the moments we share physically, and that even unspoken words can leave an indelible mark on the soul.
Beyond grief, the book explores the profound beauty of memory. Karolina’s essence is captured in images of light, music, laughter, creativity, and love. Each poem is a brushstroke painting her presence into the lives of those who knew her and those who come to know her through these words. The reflections allow readers to feel what it is like to carry a memory so vivid, so alive, that it can almost be touched — yet to do so in the absence of the person who created it. Through this, the work becomes not only a tribute but also a bridge: a means of connecting past, present, and the eternal resonance of love.
The book is written with honesty and vulnerability, qualities that invite readers into the private landscape of a mother’s grief. Yet it is never solely sorrowful; it is suffused with hope, gratitude, and the quiet resilience that emerges when the human spirit refuses to let memory fade. The unspoken words themselves — the thoughts never voiced in life — are transformed into expressions of love, acknowledgment, and continuity. They speak to the endurance of the human heart and the capacity to hold both sorrow and beauty simultaneously.
The Unspoken Words of Karolina also touches on themes of identity, legacy, and the transformative power of love. It examines how one life, however brief, can ripple outward, shaping the hearts, minds, and choices of those who remain. Karolina’s voice, preserved through poetry and reflection, becomes a teacher, reminding us to cherish what is present, to honor what is lost, and to find strength in the ongoing process of healing. Each page is an affirmation that love transcends absence, that memory keeps the spirit alive, and that even unspoken words can carry profound meaning.
The structure of the book mirrors the nature of grief itself: fluid, unpredictable, and intimate. Some pieces are concise and piercing, capturing a single emotion or moment. Others are more expansive, meandering through memories, observations, and contemplations. This variation allows readers to experience the ebb and flow of mourning, reflection, and remembrance — a rhythm that mirrors real life, where sorrow and joy coexist, where laughter and tears are never far apart, and where healing is a journey rather than a destination.
For mothers, parents, and those who have lost a loved one, The Unspoken Words of Karolina offers recognition and solace. It acknowledges that grief is both isolating and universal — a paradox that binds us to our humanity. The book does not provide easy answers or quick solutions. Instead, it gives voice to what is often unsayable, offering a space for readers to encounter their own emotions and to feel seen, understood, and accompanied in the process of mourning.
At the same time, the book speaks to anyone who has loved deeply, regardless of the type of relationship. It reminds readers of the importance of connection, the power of memory, and the beauty of expressing what is often left unspoken. It encourages reflection on how we honor those who are no longer with us, and how the love we carry for them shapes who we are and how we move through the world.
The creation of The Unspoken Words of Karolina is also an act of legacy. By giving form to unvoiced thoughts, the book preserves a life that could otherwise be defined by absence alone. It transforms sorrow into art, memory into narrative, and loss into a source of enduring meaning. It is a testament to the strength of the human spirit, the depth of parental love, and the resilience that can emerge when we choose to honor those we have lost rather than let their memory fade.
This book is more than a collection of words; it is a vessel of remembrance, healing, and hope. It allows readers to experience the intimacy of a mother’s grief and the beauty of a daughter’s life simultaneously. It is both personal and universal, private yet profoundly relatable. Through its pages, Karolina’s spirit continues to speak, her laughter continues to echo, and her presence continues to touch hearts — reminding us that love is never truly silenced, and that even the unspoken can endure forever.
In the end, The Unspoken Words of Karolina is a book about what it means to hold love in the absence of presence. It explores how grief shapes us, how memory sustains us, and how the unspoken can sometimes say more than words ever could. It is a meditation on life, loss, and the invisible threads that bind us to those we love. It is a reminder that, even in silence, love persists. Even in absence, connection remains. And even in the unspoken, meaning lives on.
For anyone who has experienced profound loss, or anyone seeking to understand the enduring nature of love, this book offers a path through sorrow toward reflection, remembrance, and ultimately, healing. It celebrates a life that, though brief, was luminous, transformative, and unforgettable. The Unspoken Words of Karolina invites readers to witness that light, carry it in their hearts, and honor the unspoken in their own lives.
Other Works
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The Unspoken Words of Karolina – gives voice to what was never said, honoring memory and grief.
2024
