I have always had an affinity towards books. Ever since I was a child, I remember one my favorite past-times being reading. Even with a PlayStation, GameCube, Gameboy, computer, and countless other games in my household, I always returned to books. I fondly remember just curling up on a couch for hours at home. Unlike many children at the time that delved into Harry Potter or Goosebumps, I blazed through the Blue Bloods series by Melissa de la Cruz and the Percy Jackson series. I was fascinated by the mythology presented in both series. It’s slightly embarrassing to admit that I did read vampire novels back in the days, but I will have to say that the Blue Bloods series was probably the most original. It included the archangels’ history and an origin for how vampires came to be in the series, which wasn’t completely cringe-y like the Twilight series, which I also read through.

I attribute my intelligence and writing skills to my affinity for reading. Reading avidly at a young age shaped my curiosity, leading me to question “Why” towards many things. In books, many things are explained logically and foundations are created, so that everything meshes well together and there are no plot holes. This is, undoubtedly, one of my flaws when watching a show or movie: I immediately notice plot holes. Books are also a source of information, aside from entertainment, so I learned a lot from reading. I remember one day in my childhood asking my mom to buy me a book about veterinary surgery (she did, by the way) – bloody close ups of surgery and organs galore – and I absolutely loved it. I was so enthralled by it. Well, we know how that story ended anyways.

Reading allowed me to learn proper grammar, spelling, and all the nuances of the English language. I grew up only being taught English in my family after my grandfather passed away, so it didn’t influence me in regards to the English language as much as it would someone whose native language is one other than English.

I, unfortunately, know nothing of the languages that my parents know: Mandarin, Cantonese, Chiu Chow/Teochew, and Vietnamese. Being older and understanding the significance of culture and language, I wish I was taught these languages as a child. It would have been much easier to learn then than it is to learn languages now.

Reading helped me master the English language and I am grateful for this skill because it helped me get to where I am today, in my current career in the legal industry. I was lauded for my great writing skills ever since I started a legal writing clerk position approximately in 2022, and the praise is what motivated me to start this blog. I originally created this blog to help me cultivate my writing skills, but I had the intention of cultivating my fictional writing skills – hence, the name. This blog was meant to be a series of short, fictional pieces. But, despite this intention, it wasn’t my true passion.

What you see now, what it’s turned into, is more akin to what my soul truly desires. I thought about rebranding to accommodate this shift in intention, but I believe the meaning of 5’1″ Stories applies to anything I write – any story that comes from me, because I am 5’1″ Stories. I purposely chose this name because I didn’t know what my blog would turn into, after all, this is my first blog I’ve ever created (we’re not counting tumblr here, okay). I chose a name that could be fluid, but still applicable to me – as the writer – for anything I chose to create on this blog.

I’ve also purposely chosen to stay anonymous as the writer, hiding my identity, because – as we all know – the internet can be a cruel, cruel world. But this also adds to the purpose of my blog: it shouldn’t matter who the story comes from – all stories matter. This is also another aspect of my brand name: 5’1′ Stories alludes to my height, but it also alludes to the idea that even though I am physically small, I still matter and I still make a difference. My voice can still be big.

I write about my hardships in life to not only inspire others to share their stories, but to also educate about what trauma, depression, anxiety, and adulthood looks like. (Also for self-expression, but that’s a given.) As children, we never fully understand what it means to be an “adult.” We just know that being an adult means we get to drink alcohol, drive cars, travel, move wherever we want, make money and spend it how we want. We don’t grasp the concept of what being an independent person in the world really means. And let me tell you now – I am fully understanding all of it. Capitalism, health care, the housing market, the economy, politics – I never really cared for much of it before because it didn’t really apply to me as a child. Oh, how privileged I was being a minor and having everything provided for me by my family! Now, as a growing adult in my late-twenties (ugh, feels so gross to say that), I am not only understanding those concepts of adulthood, but feeling the weight of those concepts. How did my mom ever raise a family of five with just her income? I can hardly raise myself with my income.

But these are things that aren’t taught to us as children. As minors, we weren’t taught how to plan ahead for the future besides what college we should go to or what career we should pick; we aren’t taught how to fight off aggressors or defend ourselves; we weren’t taught how we should pick where we choose to live; we weren’t taught about mental illnesses (especially back then); we weren’t taught budgeting. If I needed money to hang out with my friends, I would just ask my parents. If I needed to get to the mall to hang out with my friends, I would just ask my parents. I never had to deal with aggressive people as a kid; we were all angsty, emotional teenagers going through the same “life is so hard” episode. I also knew as a kid what I wanted to be when I grew up, so I never fathomed the idea of a “career change.”

I’ve been through hell and back so far, and this probably won’t be the end to my journey to the center of the Earth, but I want to share my experiences because we can all learn from one another.

Stories matter, no matter how small. Everyone’s experiences are different. The best we can do is welcome other perspectives and experiences with an open mind, an open heart, and learn from others. One should never stop learning.

The world would be a better place if everyone had compassion and empathy.