I am a Texas native who grew up in the Houston area alongside two younger sisters with a Mom and Dad in tow. I was always the “strange” kid in my family with myriad interests that no one could ever quite get a handle on. I said weird stuff and asked lots of questions! I told my Mom at 4 that I wanted to quit dance because I was behind my goal to become the next Shirley Temple and my teacher didn’t go fast enough (a decision I later regretted)! My first celebrity crush was on Lionel Richie. I was caught talking to myself… a lot! As a preteen, I listened to Alanis Morisette, Mariah Carey, Blackstreet and Green Day indiscriminately (knowing all their lyrics cover to cover). And in High School I was simultaneously a 1st string athlete and the leader of the band nerds (aka a Drum Major)!
Despite my enigmatic nature, my childhood interests could always be boiled down to my enjoyment of the following: talking, writing, music and creating imaginary worlds.
One would think with such obvious childhood interests that I would’ve come into my own as a Creative & Storyteller a lot sooner… but the road wasn’t quite so straight. It wasn’t until I made my way to Austin for college that I felt emboldened enough to unearth my passion for acting and inadvertently make significant steps toward becoming the person God wired me to be. God cultivated me in this city that I call my “Second Home”. It was here that my family was extended to some of the best people I’ve ever known; it was here that my faith was redefined.
As much as I LOVED Austin, God’s aim for me surpassed this stepping stone and in 2013… I pulled an Abraham. In essence, God gave me a vision of the stars, told me to leave my home and everything I’ve known, and to follow him to “The City of Angels”. Unlike Abraham, I wasn’t sure how this would be possible and asked for many… MANY more signs, but inevitably I decided to trust. I moved to Los Angeles armed with HOPE… and my entire savings to date (which wasn’t much). I took a step towards believing God could use the gifts and talents he gave me on a larger platform. I abandoned my comfort, my routine, my steady paycheck (which, again, was not much) in pursuit of a God-dream.
One of the most amazing outcomes of living in this city is realizing not only that I NEED God, but understanding just HOW MUCH I need to put my trust in Him. In turn, the hardest and most humbling has been finding out just how much reliance I have placed on myself over the years… and how much of that is being undone.
My journey has been paved with laughter and tears, praise and lamentation – I believe this is the time where God is teaching me to be content through it all – an education that I am happy to share with all of you… along with all the other silly stories from my crazy L.A. life!