I've seen this done on other blogs, so I thought I would give it a try here. It's actually a fun exercise, and I found that it helped me to clarify my values. So, here they are, the ABCs of Me!
A: anime - Anime is an obsession of mine, once that I don't often open up about (you'd be surprised how few American, middle-class women in their early 30s are into anime). But I love it and appreciate its importance, and the importance of its godfather, manga, in Japanese culture and history.
B: books - My mother says I was born with my nose in a book. I had very few friends as a child (and now as an adult), so books were my best companions. My boyfriend and I have 3 large bookcases completely filled, plus my nightstand is totally stuffed with books. I'm not comfortable unless I know I can retreat into a good story, or delve into history!
C: category - This may seem like a weird one, but I am one of those annoying people who love to categorize things! My computer is organized and categorized to within an inch of its life. I've done the same thing with my Outlook calendar at work, my filing system, everything. I'll never stop!
D: daydream - I can daydream whenever I want, wherever I am. Maybe not such a good talent to have?
E: echo - Echo is my middle name, one I used to hate. It's also my mother's middle name, her mother's middle name, and her mother's mother's first name. I've grown to cherish this name as one of the many things I've inherited from the women in my family.
F: fairy - As a child, I believed that fairies lived in the woods around my house. I would go "fairy hunting" as I called it, and I would spend whole summer days lost in my own fairyland. Maybe it was all those books...?
G: garlic - I love garlic! My dad is half Swiss-Italian, so I grew up eating lots of garlicky foods. I think our house permanently smelled of garlic (I loved it, but I'm not sure about guests...). I've often believed that if there is a heaven, it must smell like roasted garlic smothered in olive oil.
H: home - I'm a homebody. I love relaxing at home, much to the frustration of my extrovert boyfriend, who would much rather be out and about all the time. But being home makes me feel peaceful and safe (being out and around other people makes me feel stressed and irritable).
I: ireland - My mother's family is part Irish, and Ireland has always seemed like a spiritual home to me. I also have English, Welsh, Scottish, German, and Swiss-Italian ancestry, but I don't feel as connected to those as I do to my Irish roots. I've never visited Ireland, but it's definitely a dream of mine.
J: japan - Japan is another place to which I also feel connected. It has nothing to do with my ethnicity, obviously, but more to do with the Japanese people's inherent respect for nature as a part of their spiritual practice. I've studied both Shinto and Japanese Buddhism, and both appeal to my sense of spirituality and reverence of nature.
K: kindness - I don't think there is enough kindness in the world. Everyone is deserving of kindness and respect, and if everyone treated each other just a little more kindly, the world would be a better place, I'm sure.
L: laughter - Despite having clinical depression, I laugh every day of my life. My relationship with my boyfriend (we're going on 15 years together) is filled with laughter, and my family laughs together constantly when we're all together.
M: music - My family is very musical. Music has been a part of my life since I was born. Both of my brothers are talented musicians, as are my parents. I can play the piano fairly well and the flute a little bit. But most of all, a favorite piece of music allows me to feel things on a deeper level than I am able to otherwise.
N: nature - My greatest peace comes from being in nature. I'm lucky to live in the Pacific Northwest, as we have some of the most beautiful outdoor spaces in the world.
O: outsider - I often feel like an outsider. Part of it is my depression and low self-esteem, as I always assume that people don't like me and that they judge me. But part of it is my values, I think. I'm not an average American consumer. I'm not very materialistic, which I think is a good thing, but it puts me on the outside of a lot of popular culture.
P: peace - My need for inner peace is all-consuming for me. I sometimes feel so much pain and turmoil inside, that I feel blessed for even a moment of peace. But those moments are just too few. Part of my personal journey is the search for sustainable peace within myself.
Q: quiet - I don't like loud noises, I get too tense when there's a lot of noise around me or when there's a sudden loud noise. Give me quiet, please! (I've often suspected that I am one of those
Highly Sensitive People.)
R: rain - As a Pacific Northwest native, you have to learn to love the rain! Luckily, I have. In fact, sunny days make me cranky.
S: salami - I probably could have thought of a better "s" word than salami, but I'm hungry right now. I grew up eating tons of salami and never knew there were people who didn't like it. Now my almost-7 year-old nephew loves it, so we fight over the salami and cheese plate at family gatherings.
T: tea - I've always been more of a tea drinker than a coffee drinker (sacrilege in Seattle, I know), but a nice cup of green or jasmine tea is always going to appeal to me more than a fancy coffee drink from Starbucks.
U: uncommon - I've been told that I have uncommon tastes. Maybe so. A look at my wish list on Amazon will reveal an interest in Japanese manga, European history, fairy tales, horror novels, J.R.R. Tolkien, interior design, and social commentary.
V: veiled - I wear a veil over my heart. I've learned to over the years as a way to not get hurt. It means, though, that I don't allow myself to become close to other people. I'm trying to learn to drop the veil and reveal my true self to others, but I fear rejection too much.
W: water - Having grown up near Seattle, I have an inherent need to live near water. Water calms me. Water doesn't care about my petty problems. Water is universal. Water doesn't need me, even though I need it.
X: I don't know any "x" words, I'm sorry. Well, xylophones are cool, I guess.
Y: yearning - There are so many things I yearn for! Yearning is a feeling I am intimately familiar with. I yearn for stability, security, happiness, I yearn to see the world, to find my creative self, to make other people happy.
Z: zany - If you can't be a little bit zany from time to time, then what's the point of life?
