I never know how to describe myself, other than just as myself. When I was asked to introduce myself to my history class at the beginning of the semester, the only thing I could think of at the moment was “I fill the voids in my life with house plants.” While my plants are my babies, there’s a lot more to me than just plants. If I had to describe myself in one word only, it would be passionate. I’ve always been driven by my values; everything I do is done based on what’s important to me.
Major: Double Major in Women’s and Gender Studies and Psychology
Class Year: 2021
Hometown: Fayetteville, NY
Q: What are you known for?
A: I’m known for being strong-willed; if I’m passionate about something, I put my all into it. If something doesn’t sit right, I speak out about it. Because of this, I’m often described as “wise beyond my years,” but honestly, I’m either six or eighty-seven, there’s no in between. I’m also known for making dad jokes. Actually, I am a dad joke. Also just a side note: I had to call my mom to answer this one for me.
Q: What are you most passionate about?
A: As cheesy as it sounds, I’m really passionate about changing the world. I’m an active fighter for human rights, so I put a lot of my passion into educating people about social issues. I decided to double major in Women’s and Gender Studies and Psychology so I can help change things on the small scale.
Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?
A: Before college, I really wanted to be a librarian. But I decided to study Gender Studies and Psychology to become an advocate for and work closely with victims of sexual assault as well as those who have suffered from eating disorders.
Q: How would you get an elephant into a refrigerator?
A: Well, first of all, I would ask the elephant if they wanted to go into the refrigerator because it would be straight up cruel to shove a living thing into a refrigerator without their permission. But if they were okay with it, I would ask them to simply step into the refrigerator, it was never clarified that the fridge had to be closed.
Q: If you were a food, what would you be?
A: I would most definitely be a burrito. My insides are usually contained, but with one wrong bite, and I simply cannot hold it together anymore. However, it isn’t the end of the world. Things get messy sometimes, but a burrito is still a burrito, even if it’s no longer neat and contained.
Q: What TV show character is most like you?
A: I am convinced that I am actually Rory Gilmore. I was always that goody-two-shoes; I haven’t had a single late assignment since eighth grade, I hate breaking rules (the ones that count anyway), and my mom will always be my best friend. Just a shout out to my mom, thanks for being the Lorelai to my Rory.
Q: If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?
A: Does starting the world from scratch count as one thing? Can we create a world that isn’t based on stealing other people’s land and systematic oppression?
Q: What is your favorite meme?
A: I really live for a good SpongeBob meme. For one thing, there’s so many! There’s not one situation that couldn’t be perfectly summed up by my favorite childhood TV show character. Me hoy Minoy!
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All this being said, I think I stress too much about being able to describe myself. But something that we need to remind ourselves is that our identity can’t be found within labels. Sure, we can get an idea of what someone is like based on their interests and whatnot, but what makes you unique, is that you’re YOU. So next time I have to describe myself, I’ll describe myself as me. Â
Well, and as a dad joke, of course.