The anniversary of my birth

It is the eve of my 23rd birthday. On the day of my birth, I wonder what sorts of thoughts were running through my parents' brains. They thought another son would arrive through my mother's uterus. Instead, they received an infant with a head full of thick, dark hair and all of the necessary female anatomy. I was a terrible baby (as I am told). It was not entirely my fault; at age three my parents discovered that I had epilepsy which robbed me of sleep. After many sleepless nights for my parents, I grew into a sassy and stubborn child. My parents divorced and I started my education. I was the child that was reprimanded for talking even in kindergarten. I spent all of my summers in a bathing suit enjoying the backyard pool.

That stubborn child grew into an even more stubborn teenager. I became an incredibly independent, meticulous, fiery, strong-willed perfectionist. The early teen years were incredibly awkward. I was dubbed "big red" by my malicious step-brother which sent me into 13-year-old meltdown in the middle of my father's driveway. I found myself in a fist fight once after being called a "fat dyke". Most of the time, I was (still am) a rule-follower. I was also known to stay out until 4 or 5 AM the summer I turned 18. I survived those sometimes nasty teen years. Somewhere during the next five years after 18, that teenager turned into an adult.

Through the last five years, I wanted to be a neuroscientist, a physician, an environmental lawyer, and a veterinarian. I spent four months in Hawai'i, traveled to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, spent a month in Thailand studying tiger conservation, volunteered at many organizations, rehabilitated wild mammals, and enjoyed pet rats. I made great friends and found a great love. I spent a summer collecting data for an assessment of the earthworm invasion along Lake Superior. I became a passionate conservationist and a lover of all living organisms. I found that biology was my calling, specifically ecology. I became a non-believer and a strong advocate for evolution. I found myself swinging to the left side of the political spectrum. After 23 years on Earth, I am proud of the person I have become and the person I will continue to be.

I have been very lucky, indeed.