I’m a writer. It’s what I want to be “when I grow up.” It’s the only thing I can see myself doing for the rest of my life.

I’m a vegetarian. I eat veggie burgers and PB sandwiches. Two years ago I was a meat-and-potatoes girl, but I changed my habits after becoming an informed consumer. I’m passionate about my beliefs but I don’t preach them. I don’t condemn my friends for eating their hamburgers.

I’m an animal lover. My cat, Funny Face, is a person: moody, empathetic, and inquisitive, manifested in cat form. As I type this, she is curled up around my knees, constantly competing with the laptop for attention and space.

I’m agnostic. I believe that there is SOMETHING out there; however, I disagree with organized religions. I see so much hypocrisy in them. To me it shouldn’t matter if a person goes to church every Sunday or everyday, what matters is if a person strives to be good.

I’m a bookworm. I devour books cover to cover. Sylvia Plath, Marya Hornbacher, Megan Macafferty, Sarah Dessen, and Davida Wills Hurwin are among the authors I envy and love. Their words swirl around me like a tornado, enveloping me and lifting me off the ground. It takes a voice to bring me back to the real world, and a couple more minutes for me to become reacquainted with my surroundings.

I’m a liberal feminist. I come from a Catholic, conservative, Republican family. I am for gay-rights, environmental reform, and animal rights. I try to be as unbiased, nonracist, and nonjudgmental as possible. I take people as individuals and don’t judge them for things they have no control over. I’m a white, middle class, suburban, Southern female. I’m a stereotype but I don’t take it as my title.

I’m a recovering anorexic. Last year the world was coming at me too fast. I controlled my food…it was the one thing I had complete control over. The rules of anorexia were simpler than the ones in the real world. I knew exactly when to eat, how much to exercise, how many layers to dress in; the world became a manageable place of rules and procedures. I tried to kill the hate that I had for myself by starving myself to death. I was pulled out of school to attend a treatment program. I was out for two months. Those two months saved my life. I learned how to love myself, how to let life in rather than push it away, how not to be perfect, how to be me. Now, I thrive. I breathe in the sun, the moon, and the rain. I laugh so hard I cry. I dance if I hear a song I like. I smile so much it hurts. I love living.

I know who I am. I’m a survivor. I’m an observer. I’m older than my years. I’m feisty and passionate. I want the world. And, I will be an amazing asset to your college.