About Me — Anna Salazar
A learner
I am happy to say that this is one of the first times that the idea of writing something about me didn’t make my body shutter.
Growth.
If anything, that is all I am happy to strive for.
Now let’s give this some more context.
Ever since I was a kid, I never took much interest in anything, other than computer games (especially the Pocahontas PC game and dress-up games).
My mom, being a very active and encouraging mother, would sign me up for everything. I was in tennis, climbing, guitar lessons (to tell you that I have owned two guitars in my lifetime and don’t know how to play much more than twinkle twinkle little star), choir, gymnastics, and soccer.
Nothing stuck. I didn’t enjoy anything. My inability to place my time and attention in something that people formed their identity around really grew to become an insecurity.
This followed me around to high school.
Writing college essays about my passions and accomplishments was sure dreadful; enveloped me in the opposite of self-loving feelings.
But in college, something finally clicked.
Instead of seeing myself as a boring child (now an adult) with no interests, I began to see myself as a blank canvas. Begun to cultivate in myself the love for growth, learning, and exploration. Begun to speak, realizing that I had something to say, even of value at times.
And now I can say that I have built a life for myself that I am quite proud of. Have become a person that I am happy to write an “about me” essay about.
Of course, it is difficult to encapsulate all the complexity of a person into a work of writing, but I’ll give an elevator pitch a good old college try.
Actual start of the about me portion
I was born and grew up in El Salvador, a beautiful and small country. You could literally drive from one end to the other in 4–5 hours — which means you get to enjoy both the cool of the mountains and the warmth of the beach on the same day!
I had a beautiful childhood and a loving family.
When I was 11 years old, my family moved to SoCal. Then at 17 years old, we all moved to Texas.
Now I am still in Texas, Houston Texas to be exact (in my very controversial opinion, the best city in Texas). Currently work as a Clinical Dietitian in a hospital, living with my cute (but crazy) cocker spaniel, Bo.
I decided to become a dietitian in high school, a time in my life when suffered from an unhealthfully obsessive relationship with food and exercise, but it worked out in the long run. I enjoy the science of the human body, human interactions, and of course food.
I am blessed to be able to interact with people (patients) daily and provide any type of value, whether it be dietary counseling, a listening ear, or even a simple glass of water.
Since my job mainly deals with acute care and the nutritional management of chronic health conditions, I have enjoyed taking to writing to explore different health and wellness topics that I am interested in (plus other random things that pique my interest).
I have found that the process of learning and then gathering the information together into an engaging essay sparks something in me that not many other things do, so I am excited about my journey here on Medium.
Now moving on to what I do with my free time.
Even though I consider myself an introvert, I enjoy spending time with people. Quality time with friends and family takes a good bulk of my weekends.
I am a lover of physical activity (except for sports). Currently exploring yoga, weight lifting, calisthenics, and running. Exercise can feel like play, in a way. The process of striving for something that your body has never been able to do, and then finally achieving it is such a riveting process.
And finally, for all the childhood hobbies that I never explored, I am enjoying making art as well. More specifically watercolors, acrylics, and airdry clay (you wouldn’t imagine the amount of usable or simply decorative things you can make with air dry clay!).
I always say I have found that life truly gets better with age. The more I have matured, the more I can see and enjoy the richness of life, and dedicate my life to growth and learning. I am well aware that I am still at the ripe age of 26, and may not think the same later in life, as life gets heavy a times.
But one can hope.
Lastly, of course, I can’t leave out something that is core to my being, which would be my relationship with my Creator. Even though faith has tasted bitter at some points, it has been such a beautiful process allowing the wisdom of God to make sense in my life. And it is a process that keeps on going.
Needless to say, I don’t perceive myself as a blank canvas anymore.
My ability to grow and change is one of the aspects of my being that I love the most, especially since it was something I desired and didn’t have as a child.
If you made it this far, thank you so much for reading! I am open to any comments or feedback on this post and any of my future ones.
This has been so much fun to write, looking forward to writing more. And read what others have to say as well!
Best,
Anna
