There is more to me than meets the eye and I don't think I can be accurately summed up in a few words.
1. I graduated this year, along with twelve other homeschooled kids. I got to graduate alongside my younger sister; we always planned to graduate together but it's crazy to think that we've passed that milestone this year.
2. My favorite music artist right now is Aurora, a 24 year old Norwegian singer whose songs fall under the categories of Art Pop, Baroque Pop, and Folktronica. I find her music very calming and thought-provoking. All of Aurora's songs seem like poetry in motions, an aesthetic that I love.
3. I will be turning 20 in a few months.
4. Two recent reads of mine have been The Picture of Dorian Grey and Apostle of Freedom: Thomas Paine. I've always loved history and the writings of Thomas Paine, but his words seem all the more important in our current day and age.
5. My family has five cats. We recently got the fifth one when he (Barnabas) showed up as a stray on our back deck. We brought him inside because he looked cold and hungry and he's been in the house for just over a month.
6. Since my last 30 Things, I have been on a missions trip to Trinidad. That trip was the first time I had ever been out of my country at all, let alone on a missions trip. The week that I was gone was the best week of my life. I really feel like I grew a lot spiritually, and I was so glad I got the opportunity to learn about a new culture.
7. I have a younger sister who is only eleven and a half months younger than I. We're Irish twins!
8. If I could cosplay as any fictional character, I would go as either Kaori Miyazono from Your Lie in April or Celty Sturlson from Durarara. I have never tried cosplaying, but it seems like a really fun hobby so maybe I'll try it someday.
9. I am a total clean freak. Not Monica from Friends level of clean freak, but I do like the spaces I live in to be tolerably clean. In a way, cleaning is therapeutic for me; there's just something very relaxing about putting a house or even one room in order. I like cleaning so much that I even started a cleaning business.
10. I recently learned to crochet, and I am attempting to make a blanket.
11. I recently quit my job as a lifeguard at the YMCA after working there for just over three years. I really enjoyed my job while I had it; it was my first job and I really appreciate everything I learned and gained from it.
12. After quitting my job, I started my own business. I created a cleaning service that has been very successful during its first few months of existence. I've really enjoy having my own business; I can set my own hours, I'm doing work that I enjoy, and I feel like I'm really doing something unique.
13. I share a birthday with the singer Cher and the actor Jimmy Stewart. My birthday is also the same date as Christopher Columbus' death date.
14. I recently began journaling regularly. While I find it hard to journal sometimes, I think it's very important to document the world from my point of view. Journals are a wonderful way to preserve your inner voice and leave a testament to the world you lived in for the generations to come.
15. I spent some time this year volunteering at a summer camp that I have been going to since I was five. Camp wasn't open as usual, but I helped clean and maintain it anyway. I painted walls, strung electrical wires, dug ditches, and installed wifi routers.
16. I have gone through and studied the Perspectives missions course as part of my final project before I graduated high school. The course is focused on world missions and how every Christian can be a part of God's plan even if they never leave their home towns. The course felt especially impactful after my Trinidad trip. I saw field-missions work firsthand and then I was able to study it at a local level.
17. Before I quit my job at the Y, I was part of the best quick-rescue team and the fastest backboard team at the entire Y in my city. The YMCA lifeguards had an end-of-year test to see who was the best and safest, and my teams and I won by a landslide; we even beat teams of longtime swim team members.
18. A year and a half ago (when I wrote my first 30 Things), I intended to go to Ethnos360 Bible Institute for college. But, as with so many things in 2020 that fell through, I am not currently studying anywhere. While I still hope to get some sort of Bible/Missions degree, I am trusting that God has a plan for this setback and will reveal what he wants me to do in his own perfect timing.
19. I love poetry. I have read many of Emily Dickinson's and Edgar Allen Poe's works, and in recent years I have started writing my own poetry.
20. This year has been a really tough year for me. Nothing has seemed to go right, and I have really struggled with depression and listlessness. I am eternally thankful that I have had my family to help me; they are always there to support me and pull me out of dark places. While I am doing better now, I would have ended up in a much darker place if it hadn't been for my family.
21. One of my greatest writing inspirations is the author and patriot Thomas Paine. His writing and beliefs helped kickstart the American revolution, and he was instrumental in creating the USA. I find it very encouraging that one person with a pen and paper can inspire such a radical change in the world.
22. I love musical theater and have been involved in it for many years. I've had several small chorus parts and, for my senior year, I was backstage manager for a production of Cinderella. I have been involved in ten musicals.
23. I use to be a gymnast when I was younger. I took classes for many years and was actually pretty good, but I decided to quit when I started getting taller.
24. After I quit gymnastics, I took a crack at swim team. I only stayed on the team for one practice because I didn't like how intense all the other team members were, but it helped me become a lifeguard a few years later.
25. Two of my favorite songs lately have been "Wildflowers" by Elle Fanning and "Riptide" by Vance Joy. These songs really resonate with me because they have a simple let powerful feeling.
26. I have a very complicated personality. I am actually a very friendly person, but I have to trust a person before I will open up. Sometimes this gives people the impression that I am shy or antisocial, but that's not the case; I am just very comfortable with my close group of friends, and I value loyal long-lasting friendships over passing acquaintances.
27. I have never been in a bad car accident, though I was involved in a minor fender-bender last year. A car behind me failed to stop and rear-ended me. The accident turned into a hit-and-run after the offending driver ran from the scene; she didn't even stop to see if I was okay. This happened about two years, shortly after I got my driver's license.
28. Sine my last post of 30 Things, I have become a diehard anime fan. While some people may have watched more, I can now say that I've watched 33 anime series (some more than once) and 32 anime movies (mostly Ghibli but many other studios too). My favorite anime voice actor is Steve Blum. He did the dubbing for two of my favorite anime characters. (Can you guess which ones?)
29. If I were to recommend an anime to someone, I would recommend Your Lie in April. It was the first anime I watched, and even though it is emotionally taxing, it is a good series to start off with.
30. My favorite Studio Ghibli movie is Spirited Away. The movie actually came out the same year I was born, but I didn't see it till I was 14. The movie is good on its own, but it also holds a very dear place in my heart because it was the first thing that introduced me to Japan and that country's need for the message of the gospel.
Now you know some more interesting facts about me, did you learn something new? What fact surprised you the most? Did you ever think that I was such a complex person?
This is why I like getting to know people through questions and fun facts about them; you learn things that you never would have guessed from a first impression. People are so wonderfully complicated; they're a wonder to discover.
Sources Cited: Aurora, My Favorite Aurora Song,
