Autobiographies

15 thoughts on “Autobiographies”

1. Born on December 20, 2000 at 11:07 pm to Arlin and Michael Ficarra
   Grew up in Springfield, MA my whole life
   Favorite color is purple
   Favorite food is pasta
   My dog’s name is Cody, his birthday is on June 13th
   Graduated HS in 2019 and went to Smith right after
   Took gap year after first year during COVID and came back after
   Just finished Picker Program in DC, first time really leaving Western MA
   Internship at International Rescue Committee in Silver Spring, MD
   Individual research project on Oxycontin and Enovid trials in PR
   Second semester senior getting ready to graduate but not totally sure of post-grad plans

2. I’m Valeria, born in Venezuela, where I was raised until the age of 13. My mom and I moved to the U.S. in 2016. Neither my mom nor I spoke English. We first arrived in Des Moines, IA, a very random place; however, it helped us learn English and adapt to American culture. We then moved to Spring Hill, TN, where my aunt lived. I’m now on my own, living in Northampton, where I go to Smith College. I still go home to TN, where I get to see my mom and my cats.

3. I was born in Jacksonville Florida on Friday the 13th. It was almost like my birth alone was a bad omen for the future to come. Shortly after I moved to Augusta, Georgia, and then after that Seattle, Washington. Five-year-old me, my parent, and my brother. I’ve bounced all over the Seattle area but it has always been Seattle my heart and home. Growing up I loved to write and read, I was quickly labeled a ‘gifted’ student which probably explains why I am so burnt out now. Everyone has always expected excellence from me. My friends, family, teachers. Anyone in my life. It’s probably why I eventually landed in Northampton, Massachusetts. A first-year and prospective government student because everyone always expected excellence from me.

4. Twenty weeks before I was born, I had a stroke. When I was just five months old, I was diagnosed with hemiplegic cerebral palsy, causing weakness in the right side of my body. Though I was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, I grew up further north, on the shores of the great Lake Superior in Duluth, Minnesota. Throughout much of my childhood, I was homeschooled. When I was ten, I began having seizures and was diagnosed with epilepsy. My disabilities are a part of who I am and how I live. I am now a neuroscience major (undeclared), pre-health student with intentions of becoming a pediatric neurologist. I hope to inspire families and children with neurological conditions and give them the hope that my parents were never given, but nonetheless had. They were told I would never walk or talk, so I am beyond grateful to have grown up a competitive dancer, chatty sibling, adventurous camper, and a generally happy kid. Though I still face difficult times, I am so glad to be a Smithie!

5. I was born into a house of four — mom, dad, 3 year old Ainsley and 13 year old Joe. I grew up in Portland, OR as a quiet kid to my loud sister and, at that point, absent brother. When I learned how to love, like really, completely love, my parents didn’t quite know what to do with my passion. I loved books but didn’t have the attention to read. I loved movies but couldn’t shut up during them. I loved my grandma but couldn’t get over the anxiety of expectation that comes along with family. I met Rena, I met queerness – first in the form of YA novels. I covered my walls with sticky notes. When I left for college, I took down the sticky notes one by one and stored them in a box. I hope the box will stick with me but I don’t take it to Massachusetts.

6. To know me is to get whiplash. I was born on the last island off the coast of Florida – Key West. I grew up with my parents and my little sister on tropical beaches until I was six, when my parents pulled a 180° and moved us to Western Massachusetts – pretty much the polar opposite of my birthplace. But while I did grow to love the snow in the three years I lived here, when I was nine, we moved back to the tropics, only this time thousands of miles away on another continent. At first, the adjustment to living in Myanmar was difficult, but five years later, I had made new friends and settled into my life overseas. Before I knew it, we were moving again, and we arrived in Little Rock, Arkansas just three months before COVID hit. I was in high school, so leaving all of my friends behind was the end of the world, and getting stuck in isolation in some random state I forgot existed until the plane touched down only further convinced me that my life was over. Two years later, my life ended again when I was forced into the horror of the Arkansas public school system. I had only just learned to ignore the stench of weed coming from the bathroom stalls when I found myself back in Western Massachusetts for college. No matter how many times I get asked, I still don’t know what to say to the question, “where is home for you?” Although I’m pretty sure it’s not Arkansas.

7. I was born in Jackson, Mississippi and had the thickest accent of any one in my family, which quickly faded after we moved to Virginia, and then to central Missouri. Being an outstanding student only became important to me once I got to Missouri, and realized that once I turned 18, I would be the one to decide where I went and what I was going to do there. I’ve never been home sick, not until very recently, when my dad dropped me off for J-term, and half way through doing my laundry I realized how quiet the dorm was. I’m here now, what do I have to justify that? Why here and not anywhere else?

8. My name is Miranda Reiko Gibson born June 13, 2002, in Bethlehem, PA with a mom, dad, and 2 brothers. I was raised in an African/Japanese American household in the suburbs of PA and attended a predominately white school my whole life. I’m a dancer, tennis player, and artist with the favorite hobbies of working out, listening to music, and spending time with friends or my dog. I found myself at Smith 4 years ago after being set on going to an HBCU but the universe had other plans for me despite acceptance. At Smith, I am an economics and studio art double major with a digital media concentration, tennis player, Amherst College dancer, and Delta. My goals in life or what I think they are revolve around good health, faith, financial freedom, being surrounded by a loving and supportive family, and the goal of finding a life mission that I look forward to every day

9. Being born and raised in Maine, I dreamed of traveling the world. My two parents met while working at the National Outdoor Leadership School(NOLS) and have visited several continents. Meanwhile, my younger sibling and I were born in a small rural town and grew up at the boys’ summer camp my family owns and runs. We used to say we had a lake as our front yard. I learned to love all the seasons, especially Winter. Then I went to Gould Academy for high school where ski racers are the jocks and snowsports reigned supreme. It wasn’t till college that I finally left the state of Maine to further my education. Smith College got me as far as Massachusetts but I wonder where I’ll go next…

10. To understand me, first understand where I come from. So much of me has been molded by the burning Caribbean archipelago I was born in, Cuba. In our shared poverty, we were strangely rich. In the strife of our everyday lives, our relationships with each other were nuggets of gold that got you through it. It’s how I knew so many of the kids in the small barrio I grew up in. Either we knew each other from school or, inevitably, our families knew each other. We were all little wild animals. I spent every morning running around, coming up with convoluted games to play and arrived home with torn knees but always smiling. I grew up around three generations of women. The only male presence in my life was my dad. He was just that, a presence – kind of like Santa : similarly fat, lives in a cold far away land and gives me gifts. He left me and my mom with the promise that he will take us there someday. I dreamed of the city where movies are from, with their endlessly tall buildings and fashionable people, New York. Yet with time, I made peace and stopped thinking about it. Uncharacteristically quick, everything fell into place for that promise to come true. The quick change shattered my rose colored glasses, tearing deep into me. For a long time I never wanted to see anything anymore because my heart belonged to that humid landmass where my friends were. I was a stranger in a foreign land and I wanted to scream. But time really does heal everything. The cold magical place that was once so distant began to feel like home. I became tethered to it by the people I have met that made me feel loved. I am carving out a future for myself as a first generation student here at Smith

11. On May 25th, 2001, I was born. I was nine days late. Classic. My sister and I were supposed to have the same due date, just 4 years apart, but on trend with the rest of my life, I think I wanted something just for myself. I grew up in Rumford Rhode Island, where my mother was a Reverend at a local church and my dad taught science at the private school I had the privilege to attend. In 2014 my family moved to Portsmouth, RI, where I still live today. When I started high school I also started playing lacrosse. My drive and passion for the sport led me to be recruited by Smith College, where I am anxiously beginning my final semester.

12. I was born in Bridgewater, Massachusetts, and at the young age of one year old I moved to New York City due to my dad’s military work. In my early years I was an energetic kid, and throughout elementary school I found an outlet for that energy, gymnastics and competitive cheerleading. Interests change with time and come middle school I found myself becoming more like my older sister, less inclined toward sports. From middle school on I gravitated toward creative mediums. In my preteen years it was art, in my early teens it was theater, and now, in my late teens, its all of those plus writing. My mom and dad have always been incredibly supportive of me and my interests. I credit them with fostering the environment that allowed me to explore so many interests and become the art, theater, and writing loving person that I am today here at Smith College. I don’t know what the future holds for me, nor what I want to do with it, but I approach it and whatever new interests it holds for me with open, anxious, hopeful arms.

13. I was raised with heart, in a tight-knit little family of four. From my parents, I learned to love through sharing, and sharing stories most of all. Evenings spent reading parallel or reading out loud, fending off the bitingly cold Chicago Christmases of my single-digit ages with an annual re-read of Tolkien or working our way through the Mistborn Trilogy amidst the rainy tantrums of a Dallas January. My parents’ favorite book series have followed me through my winters, showing me what they value and what I have come to value. I learned to share my own love, patchworking people and animals and memories and experiences into my story with firm, fond stitches. Twelve years of piano no longer in use; the sets and lights and cues of running tech for musicals; a pony I wish I could call my own; grandparents who I could say raised me; friends who’ve become strangers; friends who’ve become family. Over the years, some stitches have been cut, or have had to be cut, taking a piece out of the fluctuating design or simply reintegrating in a different place or a different angle. Redefining. Stitches are not as final as they seem, I’ve had to learn, even when it comes to the heart.

14. By the time my mom got pregnant with me and my twin brother, it was her 6th time trying; she’s gay and used IVF to have us. Though I’ve had a few “step” families since then, it’s really just been her, my brother, and me my whole life. I grew up in the Antelope Valley in California– just an hour north of LA. To understand me means to understand my upbringing; my mom studied sociology and psychology in college. Because of that, my brother –his name is Bryan by the way, and my mom’s is Susana– and I were raised without social constructs, judgement, or normativity. What we were raised with, however, was with a lot of trust and authenticity. As a Mexican family, genuine kindness and compassion flows through us like water. It is this foundation that makes up how I view the world and interact with others. It is what gave me the strength and courage to attend a challenging university (my home town’s schools weren’t very good) across the country, far from home. It’s what helps me make a home for myself anywhere.
    (original)

15. I’m Vanessa Ellis. I grew up in Danvers, Massachusetts— which is right next to Salem and arguably more cursed. At Smith, I’m an English and Film and Media Studies double major. I’m in the second semester of my senior year, and am finally taking the cool classes that didn’t fit in my schedule before (like creative writing)! I’m definitely more active in the film department; I like making short films and studying digital media. I work remotely at a film company in California (where I’ve never been) and on-campus at the mail center. My grab bag of fun facts includes: 1. I have a pet axolotl. 2. I am technically a cyborg, so you may hear medical alarms from my corner of the room. 3. I am a certified advanced scuba diver, but there is not much to see on the North Shore and it is very cold.