brittany chew.

Britt and I go back quite a few years. (You never realize how much time has passed until you take a moment to think about it). We met our freshman year of college and were in the same small group at our fellowship. Both of us hit it off with each other, and our heritage helped us bond a bit more. ;) (She's half-Japanese!) Over the years, she's become such a sweet, dear sister of mine and we've shared lots of good laughs, she's been there for me during my tough times, but also during the jubilant peaks of my college career. Britt has such a huge heart, and it was my joy to be able to introduce you to who she is.

"Not what I do, but who I am"

{Brittany Chew. 22. P.A. Grad School Applicant.}

Well, tell me a little bit about yourself.

B: My name is Brittany. I am 22 years old. I graduated, B.A. about, almost a year ago now. Ahhh! (laughs) And I have been at home since then. I work part-time at a pharmacy, and I’m going to school, kind of taking some classes. And then I’m gonna apply for grad school this Spring! So, I am excited! (laughs)

What are you going into grad school for?

B: I’m gonna apply to Physician Assistant programs and yes. That is my dream. (laughs) or my goal.

What do you see yourself doing with that?

B: A physician’s assistants are like assistants to the physicians. (laughs) We work under the supervision of a doctor. Surprisingly enough. So I think I want to, based on my experience so far, work in a hospital, but I’m not sure what kind of specialty. I worked a lot with young kids, but then also with the older generation and I think I’m a little more inclined, or kind of have more of a heart for the older generation, so we’ll see if the Lord leads me to work with that age group.

What lead you to become interested in this thing or P.A.?

B: Mm let’s see. My dad first mentioned the idea to me. (I didn’t really know what a PA was, or that a P.A. even existed. I think it’s more of a rising kind of thing, growing more popular). I think at first since it was my dad’s idea, I was kind of like, ehhh no thanks, I’ll think of something else. But I think I’ve always had an interest more so in the sciences than in the arts, and so it kinda shows that path to start. And then basically all my family is in healthcare, so I don’t know if it was just natural for me to pursue something in that area, or also just something that’s really interesting to me because I have parents that do it, so I can kind of see what it’s like. That was really an appealing profession to me. I think just in general the idea of being able to care for people’s needs, like physical needs -- I know that’s just a piece of the puzzle to the whole person, but I think it’s a very important piece.

Was there a certain point where you were like, this is what I know what I want to do?

B: I don’t think it was like a certain moment. I think it was more of just a progression. ‘Cause at first, it was just an idea, right? It kind of was not something that I practically pursued, but I think when I was getting closer to graduating and needed to start figuring out what I wanted for myself and what I was going to do after college. So I think that pressure, in a sense, kind of motivated me to start learning more about what a P.A. exactly was, and why I would want to do it. Yeah, I just think shadowing different people who are in that profession has kind of confirmed my excitement for it; I see what they do, and I like what they do. I think it’s really interesting and exciting; it’s different on a day-to-day basis. So, I think that’s the thing that helped me on my way.

tracy moore.

Back in December, I caught up and interviewed my dear friend for my ongoing personal project. He's one of my good friends who I've had the blessing of getting to know for the past 3-4 years. Tracy is such a great friend, and someone who I look up to a lot. He has a plethora of wisdom to share, and is one of the most patient, compassionate guys I know! 

For his interview, we talked inside Casa De La Luna in Downtown Bellflower, (the same place I interviewed Hilda). We found a pretty neat park right across from the library. :) 

By the way, he's super buff. Don't mess with him. (Kidding. Sort of).

Okay, without further ado!

"Not what I do, but who I am"

{Tracy Moore. 22. Older brother. Student. Personal Trainer.}

What got you into personal training? Or why do you want to do personal training?

T: A lot of it had to do with my college life, because I got into college really overweight and not really interested in fitness. Then, through various experiences, I guess talking to people in my dorm and meeting some people in the college ministry, I started wanting to play basketball and be healthier. I lost some weight and through that I found my passion for fitness, I guess.

Was there a certain point where you were like, “Man! This is what I want to do!”?

T: I had an epiphany over winter break of my second--no my third year, I think it was my third year--where I was like, “Man. I spend all my time reading fitness articles, I go to the gym 5 or 6 times a week, and anytime I get a chance, like whoever will listen, I talk to them about it, so I might as well," y’know. I think it’s pretty obvious that I like it. Y’know what I mean. So I figured that it’d be really cool to do as a job. It’s right at the same time that I had that epiphany that I had the other one that I realized I could graduate a year early. I thought about it and I figured it would make a lot more sense for me to graduate early and get my Sociology degree so I can move on to what I actually wanted to do.

How was it after you graduated early? Was it what you expected in terms of pursuing personal training?

T: It wasn’t as streamlined as I expected. There’s a lot of administrative stuff that went wrong with school that set me back than I would have originally liked. When I’d get set back, I’d be like, "Aw man, why’d I graduate a year early so I could sit here and like be taking four units at community college? What’s going on with my life right now?" But it all worked out in the end. Every now and then I’d be thinking if I did the right thing, if that was really God talking to me or was it just me being fed up with college, or being overambitious.

How did you get through that time then?

T: Uhm, gradually. I mean I think the good thing that right after I graduated, I think it was good for me to see how much of an impact we’d mutually had on each other’s lives. And a lot of my friends would reach out (to me), even though they were in college. Even when they wouldn't,  if I called them up or something, most of the time they’d make a little time to talk, and I think that helped a lot. Also it helped that I moved in with some guys I met during college, so it was a little better than moving in with three strangers.

How was transitioning from Irvine to LA, ‘cause that’s pretty different. 

T: I mean as far as the community goes, it was really hard for me going from Newsong, because that was the first church I would call home, y’know? Where I came to Christ, and went through Edge all three years of my college experience. Then I moved up to there (LA), and everyone was already established. Of course they welcomed me out to church and stuff like that, but it was kind of like looking all over again, but not. It wasn’t the same because no one else was looking with me, so it was a little more lonely. Natalie (his girlfriend) came with me sometimes -- that was nice. It was tempting to go back to Newsong, ‘cause one of my apartment mates drove back and forth, but I didn’t feel like that was healthy for me. I eventually found a church though, so I’m very happy where I’m at now.

What do you like to do?

T: I really like to play basketball and I enjoy taking care of kids and lifting weights. Reading about nutrition, and I don’t know, I really like being around people; I get a lot of energy from it. Like 99% of the time, so hanging out with people. And Natalie, I like hanging around Natalie; she’s pretty cool, I guess. 

hilda tam.

I met Hilda when I was a freshman in college. I've always admired her eye for practically everything in the arts: photography, crafts, graphic design, and video. Hilda volunteered to be interviewed and photographed for my project, and I'm so glad she did!

We had coffee and talked at Casa De Luna Coffee House in Downtown Bellflower. I've never walked around Downtown Bellflower before, so it was cool to explore!

"Not what I do, but who I am"

{Hilda Tam. 23. Graphic Designer. UCI 2011 Graduate.}
Website. Tumblr. 

How about you tell me a little bit about yourself.

H: Well, my name is Hilda Tam. I am a recent graduate and I am an artist, I guess. I do mostly graphic design, but am interested in a lot of art-related things, like illustration. I’m interested in photography, but I wouldn't call myself a photographer. I like doing crafts like making costumes, or whatever it is in my hands. I guess I would say I’m an artist all around, like in music, too.

Would you describe yourself as an artist?

H: Yeah, I’d say so. I think because most of the things I’m interested in are art-related, or more on the creative side. When people would ask me, “What would you do if you weren’t into graphic design, or drawing?” then my second answer would be, "I’d be interested in performing, doing comedy, or acting, or maybe I’d be a musician," or something like that. My next answer to not being a graphic designer or illustrator would automatically go into something else that’s creative.

What got you into art? Or, you said graphic design is your...

H: It’s like my go-to thing. The most prolific thing I do is probably graphic design. I've always been interested in art ever since I was a kid. I think I still have pages and piles of drawings I used to do when I was a kid. They would all be the marker/crayon drawings, but I remember bringing around paper whenever I went someplace, and I would always have something to draw. Or one of those etch-a-sketch magnetic boards, I used to have one of those, and it’d be really easy just to erase my drawing, and do another one and keep on doing that throughout the day. 

I’ve always been interested in art, but I guess I got more into graphic design around high school. I had a friend that was making things for her Xanga, and I thought, “Wow, that’s cool! I want to learn how to do that, too!” so I tried doing it, and started looking things up. I guess that’s just how it got started, and I did it more in college when people would ask me to make things for them. The more I did things, the more people would know, then people would ask me, and that’s really how I got started.

Would you say that all your other artistic interests sprouted off from that? You just had other interests in making costumes, photography, and other things?

H: I wouldn't say it came off from doing graphics because I think I had interest in those things before, but I just never really pursued them until maybe high school or college. Probably because of funds, or not having equipment. I’d be interested in photography, but I wouldn't have a nice camera. Or I’d be interested in making costumes, but I wouldn't have a sewing machine at the time, so things I made were small hand-made things, or hand sewing things. As I got older, then those things became more available, and that’s how I started getting into them more.

Do you feel ever since you got a sewing machine and a camera, you've been able to make more stuff, or your creativity has been able to go off?

H: Yeah, I think so.  Now that there are things available to me, I feel like when I want to do something, I don’t have to sit around and wonder how I’m going to do it or how do I have the means to do it. I feel like I do have the means, but it’s more of my own personal desire to want to do something. Like doing side projects to keep myself motivated and inspired. Now it’s something I have to push myself to do. I enjoy doing it, it’s not always easy of course, we have periods of time where we're like, “Ugh, I don’t feel like doing anything,” but then once you get started on a project, it’s really hard to stop. You want to see it finished, and you’re in the zone. I think that’s the most exciting part; being in the zone and being so excited to have it be finished and to see it come into fruition.

Are there any projects you’re working on now, and what are one or a few of the projects you’re most proud of? Or that have made you really happy?

H: I’m actually trying to redesign my website and get business cards going. I think the one thing I’m currently working on are a few logos for my friend’s food blog. I’m trying to create something for her to put on her website so she can start her own branding. I’m trying to do my own branding thing, too. I always have a lot of ideas that are in my head or on a piece of paper, but for some reason I just don’t end up doing them until I feel like I have to do it and then the list starts getting really long and I tell myself, “Okay, these are just things on a list. When are they going to be actual projects?” 

When does that happen for you? When you have such a long list, but when does it actually happen?

H: Usually I try to keep myself motivated when I follow a lot of artists on Tumblr. Or I try to keep up with a lot of artists’ websites to see what kind of updates they have. I admire the way that other artists can keep themselves so motivated. I feel like that’s a difficult thing when you don’t necessarily have anything to keep you from doing it, or keep you going besides yourself. Especially if you’re doing a job that’s totally unrelated to what you’re interested in, but you kind of do it on the side, it’s really up to you to keep it going. When I look at what other artists do, or I follow things on Tumblr that I’m interested in,  that’s the kind of thing that helps me turn an idea into an actual project. You see something, and you think, “Man, I want to do that, too,” or, “Wow, that’s really cool! I can do something just like that.” 

I guess that branches into what I actually have ideas for. I could tell you I have business cards ideas. I have Christmas card ideas, too. Especially since it’s the holidays, and I want to put them on paper so I could actually use them for something. I have ideas for making clothes. I have a lot of old t-shirts that I’ve kind of been saving up that I don’t really wear anymore. One of the ideas I have not done anything with is making a t-shirt quilt. Like, cutting out the design of the t-shirts, and having squares of t-shirts and making it into a quilt rather than just throwing them away or donating them. Y’know we have a lot of t-shirts that mean a lot to us and you’re like, “I have 50 t-shirts, but I don’t know what to do with them and they still have so much meaning to me.”

"not what i do, but who i am".

As a recent post-grad, the most common question I get is: "What do you do?"

I know that our occupation, (or one lack thereof), helps define who we are, but that barely does it justice. We are more than what we do, what title we hold, or what society claims we are. Every person has a story to tell, dreams they're chasing, growing passions, and personality quirks that make them who they are.

I highly dislike the fact that people in our day and age put such an importance on what we do instead of really getting to know who people are, the stories they have to tell, and seeing a person deeper than the surface.

Through this project, I hope to show others who I've come to know and love that they are more than what others see them as, but they are amazing individuals with beautiful hearts and incredible souls. I want people to know and understand that they're more than their job, their relationship to an institution, but that they're uniquely and beautifully themselves.

This is personal because it's something that I struggle with myself, as I'm sure a lot of people my generation can relate with. This will be an ongoing project, and I hope that it'll spur me on to develop deeper relationships with people, and see others how God sees them.

{If you're interested in being a part of this project of mine, contact me and we'll talk. :)}