| What is your most memorable childhood experience? | Birthdays are a special time for any child, but for many years I was more excited about my parents' than my own. One special day, well before I was tall enough to reach the countertops in my family's kitchen, I decided to bake my mother's birthday cake. I waited until my brother was napping and my mother was running an errand, and flew into my very first baking frenzy. My father and I had often played with chemistry sets, and I had watched my mother prepare cake mix with this in mind. Flour, extra sugar, baking soda, eggs (and some shell - oops), and, most importantly, as far as I could tell, food coloring! Somehow, I had completely forgotten about the oven. My mother came home to a bowl of green, wet dough. Somehow, she turned it into a viable mix, covered it in delicious icing, and turned my creation into a birthday cake. I haven't baked much since then, but still love cooking. |
| What immediate family member do you closely identify with and why? | My mother is a lifelong teacher, and one of the most adventurous and caring people I know. An old family saying claims that "teaching is in our blood," and while my relatives are doctors, businesspeople, ministers, and publishers, we recognize that others come to us for guidance, leadership, and mentoring. My mother epitomizes this in her generation, and my brother and I both take after her in this. We've built careers teaching in three countries, worldwide, and while I no longer teach the three of us still constantly share lessons with one another, regarding how we can better serve and guide those who rely on us in the classroom, office, or daily life. |
| What character traits do you admire in an individual? | I am most inspired by those who exhibit both heartfelt compassion and intellectual criticism. Whether idealists with their feet on the ground, or realists with a passion for justice, they are truly humane problem-solvers. I've always looked up to good storytellers, too. |
| What is the funniest thing ever to happen to you? | When I was young, my cousin and I loved to pretend we were explorers. One day, we were at the athletic club with our parents when we wandered into the underground handball courts. Naturally, we managed to lock the door, which only opened from the inside. Within minutes, we heard our parents yelling for us, and shortly thereafter saw my father rappelling over the edge of the court using his climbing gear! He started to try and comfort us, but it was all just a big game to we two wee explorers. We all giggled our heads off, and the story has lived in family infamy ever since. |
| If time and money were not an issue, where would you travel and why? | If I didn't have to worry about money, my plans wouldn't change much (though I would finally take my dream scuba trip to the Great Barrier Reef). I've been fortunate enough to have surpassed most of my travel goals, having been to nearly 40 countries and having lived on three continents. My goal is to live, work, or study everywhere possible, making local friends and getting to know their cultures and ways of life. |
| When and if you ever have children, what would you like to pass on to them? | If my children were able to relate to others like my mother's side of the family, and exhibit the intellectual curiosity of my father's side, I would be delighted. My mother's family has empathetic abilities so strong that some people joke that they're superpowers. |
