The good news is that experiences make you who you are, and my ventures in uncoolness (did I mention that someone once asked my best friend if I was mute? In front of me? When I was in high school?) led me to who I am today. And if you clicked on “About,” either you wanted to know who I am today or you’ve made a terrible mistake. (Don’t worry. You can hit the back button.)

So who am I today?

Post-high school, I packed up my bedroom and my unpopularity and headed to college, where I learned a lot:

1. Despite my teenage appetite for literature, there are some books I don’t like. Particularly American literature from 1920-1946.

2. There should be more horror movies set in libraries. As someone who spent her first semester of college closing the library every Friday night, I can attest to the cinematic potential of the dark stacks.

3. When you study abroad, choose your new school based on the place, not the program. I learned more outside the classroom than in. For instance, did you know that you can accidentally just walk out of the ruins of Pompeii and get completely lost? Didn’t learn that in history. Did you know that Middle Earth and Narnia were inspired by the same weird forest in England? Didn’t learn that in English. Did you know that 3-3=3 when you lose three buttons from your coat on a hike to find an ancient Irish burial mound, but still have all three when you return? Didn’t learn that in math.

4. There is nothing more satisfying than a binder full of perfectly curated lesson plans. There is nothing more thrilling than realizing half of what you planned isn’t quite working, and you have to change it all spontaneously to fit the moment, the student, or the circumstances.

5. You might change your mind about what you want to be when you grow up. Multiple times. In a day.

After college, I spent a year floundering through the world of substitutes and educational non-profits, only to finally land a job at a small private school in Lexington, MA. After four blissful years teaching high school English, I was asked to help revamp the seventh grade curriculum, and–no correlation with my entry into seventh grade education–I also enrolled in a graduate counseling program. Three years later, and I am now a high school adjustment counselor.

So, my identity has changed over the years. Cool baby -> weird kid from Japan who doesn’t actually look Japanese even though she sort of is -> socially awkward middle schooler who wears boys’ cargo pants -> mute high schooler who wears all black and dyes her hair bright red -> adventurous college student who skips class sometimes (don’t tell my mom) -> broke house-mom/substitute teacher -> fresh-faced English teacher with flexible seating (beanbags!) -> burnt out English teacher -> college student, again? -> adjustment counselor with tea, low-lighting, and legos.

There has been one steady aspect of who I was and who I am.

I was–and am–a writer.

(Except maybe during the cool baby stage.)