Hi, my name is Anna Soriano. I am a freshman here at Piedmont College and am currently loving Piedmont College. I am 18 years old and from Marietta, Georgia. Even though I am currently a Psychology major I am definitely rethinking it because I did not do so well in my intro to psychology class on some of the tests. Also, my final exam grade for that class was a D but I tried not to be to bummed about it. I am a middle child and have two sisters which has it’s ups and downs. I am an Asian American but I was born in the U.S. My parents are both Asian but my mom is Japanese and my dad is Filipino. I also have two dogs they are both poodles. I did have a big standard poodle earlier in my life but he unfortunately died of a tumor. The names of the two we currently have are Charlotte and Sunny and I love them so much!

I’ll start with where I grew up. I grew up in Anderson, South Carolina. I wasn’t born there because I was born in Augusta, Georgia. I lived there till I was in 3rd grade. One day my parents decided that we should move and so in the summer of 2010 we moved to a neighborhood in Marietta, Georgia. As with moving to different locations I moved to different schools too. The first few I went to in South Carolina were one private school and one public school. I’d just like to say that racism was used way more at the public school I went too. However, the private school I went to for like 3 years was also not the right fit for me. I have struggled in school since 1st grade partly because I did not know I had a learning disability at that time. Also, I was a pretty shy and quiet during class so it was hard find school enjoyable. I have a few more disabilaties that I forgot to mention which include social anxiety, being on the autism spectrum, OCD, and (had) selective mutism. I must say It has gotten so much better through lots of therapy, testing, and support. Which I am pretty proud of. It’s still a big struggle but I just continue to work on it. When I moved to Georgia I was enrolled in another public school which was a little better than the public school I went to in South Carolina. During 4th grade I started receiving speech therapy till I was in 9th grade. Which is really weird because I don’t know why they kept me in speech therapy that long. The middle school years were better even though I still had the challenges that I face today. During the middle of 6th grade that’s when I began to come out of my shell a little more and from there it just progressed. Starting high school I got off to a rocky start because I was struggling in my classes and thankfully my parents noticed. My last school years were spent at a private school that was a perfect fit for me because it specialized with teaching kids with ADHD/ learning disabilities. I’d say my sociableness was it’s strongest during those last few high school years. I benefited from this school because I gained two close friends who I still see on breaks.

As for interests and hobbies I have many! I enjoy a variety of hobbies including drawing, painting, reading, dance, writing, journaling, and working out. I am pretty creative which runs in the family I guess. My sister’s are also pretty artsy and creative too. I also love watching Netflix, Youtube, and movies. Moving onto sports I am not super athletic but I have done quite a few sports in the past. To begin I did recreational softball for about 3 years. I was pretty good and I played quite a few positions. When I lived back in Anderson I did swimming for a bit and apparently was pretty good at that too. I tried out Tennis, horseback riding, and gymnastics which of course did not continue. However, I broke my writing arm (my left arm) during like my first gymnastics class because I was messing around on the uneven bars. Speaking of gymnastics, I also did rhythmic gymnastics which did not last long either. Also, I did ballet and tap when I was younger. I forgot to mention I love listening to music too!

Okay so I am a pretty chill person and like my alone time however I do like spending time with one or two friends or acquaintances every know and then. I love funny things and when people act funny around me. It just makes the atmosphere less tense. I am a Catholic and have always been Catholic since my Baptism. Everyone in my family is actually. However, know that I am in college there are some things that my family haven’t taught me and some things that I am now discovering which I wish I knew in the past. As I keep learning new things everyday I am shocked at how I come to understand more things about the world and society that I’ve never known. As I’ve grown up I’ve come to learn that not everything your family believes and believes you’ve grown up with are always true. I hope to discover more truths and have more freedom to believe in what I think is true.

To conclude, even though I continue to struggle with some things I try the best I can to tackle whatever problem comes my way. Sometimes I feel disappointed in myself or compare myself but I find if I focus on the positive It really makes a difference. As for my ethnical differences I hope that I can be an advocate for people of different backgrounds and races. Since I have struggled with Racism myself in the past I want to give back somehow. I have also realized I have come a long way from the beginning of my life to now but still have a long road ahead. Although I know that I can’t change the challenges or situations I face I can continue to experience the challenges that will change who I am as a person. For the future, I hope to have made more progress in every aspect of my life and not be afraid to be judged or speak my opinions. Also, I hope to enjoy my life and make the most out of experiences.