Standing in the Breach

A Call to Self-Governance

in a World Pulled Apart

Diana Vazquez-Douglas
Author · Former Banker · Real Estate Sales Associate · Servant Leader · Steward of the Middle Way Movement

I was born in Germany in 1964 to a Puerto Rican father who served in the U.S. Army and is a Vietnam veteran, and an Austrian mother shaped by post-war Europe. Raised as a military dependent on foreign soil, I learned early that identity, power, and belonging are not theoretical concepts—they are lived realities shaped by leadership, systems, and history.

My life and career have moved between worlds that rarely speak to one another: finance and faith, markets and morality, leadership and service.

I hold a degree in Finance and Business Administration from the University of Florida. My professional background spans commercial banking, multi-family affordable housing lending through a nonprofit bank consortium, and new home sales during periods of rapid growth and speculation. I also hold an active real estate license and continue to work inside housing markets that reflect both opportunity and strain.

I have worked within systems that allocate capital, shape communities, and reward performance—and I have seen firsthand how easily purpose is eclipsed by profit when ego goes unchecked.

For nearly forty years, I have been a registered Republican, drawn to principles of responsibility, stewardship, and service. Over time—through business, housing, family life, and my decision to step forward as a local political candidate—one truth became unavoidable:

Our greatest crisis is not partisan. It is developmental.

We have built powerful institutions without the maturity required to govern them. The result is an endless pendulum swing—left to right, liberal to conservative, Democrat to Republican—with no resolution, no accountability, and no healing.

A Voice for the Middle Way

The Middle Way Movement is not a party, a brand, or an ideology. It is a call back to balance—rooted in discernment, emotional intelligence, gratitude, and servant leadership.

I write and speak from the breach: the space between extremes, where clarity still matters and humility is not mistaken for weakness. This work draws on ancient wisdom traditions, lived experience inside modern systems, and a conviction that leadership without restraint ultimately harms the very people it claims to serve.

When broken people run systems, the systems break. Healing requires more than reform. It requires maturity.

Blueprints for Balance

My books and Letters from the Breach are not commentary. They are blueprints for balance.

They examine how unexamined ego, fear-driven craving, and moral certainty distort leadership in families, institutions, markets, and nations—and how wisdom, accountability, restraint, and gratitude restore what has been lost.

This is not soft work.
It is necessary work.

Make America Grateful Again

Gratitude is not weakness. It is discipline.

It is stewardship of what we have been given—time, talent, resources, institutions, and one another.

Gratitude grounds love in action.
And service is love made visible.

Walk the Middle Way

Where truth becomes leadership.
Where healing becomes strength.
Where restraint becomes power.

America does not need another party.
It needs a pulse.

The next movement will not be led by outrage or ego, but by women and men who understand that leadership is not about being seen—it is about showing up, again and again, in service to something larger than themselves.

This is the work of standing in the breach.
This is the work of the Middle Way.

Through story, haiku, and humor, these books chart the difficult middle path—where awareness replaces blame, restraint becomes strength, and self-governance restores what fear has fractured.

Books by Diana

Coming in 2026

DIANA: Dancing with Dragons

A Book of Fire, Faith, and the Middle Way

DIANA: Dancing with Dragons is a collection of short stories and reflections written from the breach—the space between breakdown and becoming, certainty and humility, fire and restraint.

These pieces trace encounters with power, faith, family, systems, and self, asking what happens when sensitivity is mistaken for instability and conscience is treated as a liability.

Some stories arrive as memory.
Others as warning.
All are written in service of clarity.

This is not a diagnosis or a manifesto.
It is an invitation—to sanity, stewardship, and the Middle Way.

Unhinged, Uncaged, Unstoppable: A Haiku Awakening

A fierce poetic uprising—seventeen syllables at a time.

Born of lived experience and spiritual awakening, this haiku collection slices through illusion with wit, fire, and emotional precision. Each poem distills complexity into clarity, exposing the fault lines between fear and freedom, sanity and madness, silence and voice.

A rebellion in verse for those who refuse to be tamed.

Mom in the Middle: The Barkside Chronicles

A galactic tug-of-war between chaos and calm, starring a strong-willed mom and her two furry forces of nature—Bark Vader and Princess Kittya.

Star Wars meets suburban realness—with a tail-wagging twist.

Written with humor and heart, this lighthearted chronicle explores discipline, love, frustration, and grace—for humans navigating the mess, the mischief, and the Middle Way.

Little F’ers Everywhere: A Haiku Reckoning with the Traits That Trip Us Up

A sharp, humorous haiku collection about the small habits that cause big trouble—in ourselves, our relationships, and the world.

These poems aren’t about villains.
They’re about patterns.

Ego.
Avoidance.
Resentment.
Certainty.

Written with wit and restraint, Little F’ers Everywhere invites recognition without shame—and reminds us that awareness is often the first act of service.

📚 Now Available

Sacred Silhouettes: Haiku for the Heart and Mind

Seventeen syllables at a time, this collection speaks to grief, resilience, and the sacred path to wholeness—a quiet companion to the Middle Way Movement. Each Haiku is accompanied by a short reflection or writing prompt.

Available at https://www.sunshinebookco.com an independent Florida bookstore

Mom in the Middle: The Middle Way is Paved with Paw Prints

A whimsical tale of love, barking, and balance.
A playful, poetic journey through everyday life—where laughter, love, and life lessons come wrapped in fur and wagging tails.
Find grace in the mess, purpose in the noise, and joy in the middle of it all.

Available at https://www.sunshinebookco.com an independent Florida bookstore

📚 View all books on Amazon: amazon.com/author/dianavazquezdouglas

All titles are published through Middle Way Press, an imprint of Diana Vazquez-Douglas, LLC devoted to truth, balance, and creative freedom.