Positive Personal and Cultural Identity
My background/upbringing heavily contributes to who I am as a person. All the symbols on my ceramics tile represent aspects of who I am and how I was brought up.
I was a summer baby, born in August, and I grew up in Osoyoos which is one of the only deserts in Canada. I spent much of my childhood running around in the bright warm sun, and to this day, I feel most content when the sun is shining- hence the sun on my tile.
I like to embrace my intuition, which is symbolized by the eye on my tile. I value the action of “trusting my gut”. I often dream of events that end up coming true in real life, or have bad feelings about situations/people without logical reason, that end up being accurate.
I’m a very passionate, emotional person. I often find myself grieving others’ pain and feeling it with them. No matter how hard I try to act unbothered, under it all I am a fragile person who is easily affected by my surroundings. This is displayed in the tear.
The big red heart signifies my capacity for love. I’ve now reached a stage where I’m selective about individuals I allow into my inner-circle. But the few people I am close with, I love hard. I put my loved ones before anything and I’m not afraid to stand up for them even if it puts me in a troubling position.
As a child, my family was always doing things quickly, it seemed like they were constantly rushing to get something done or be somewhere. Life felt very fast paced and it didn’t take long for people to get overwhelmed when things went wrong. I didn’t like this style of experiencing life, and I acted rather slow and patient. I think someone had to be. I still like to move at my own pace and let things flow, I hate rushing around. I don’t know if this was an adaption to my environment, or a trait instilled at birth (I did take my time coming out of the womb). This characteristic of mine is shown in the snail on my tile.
Lastly, I added a butterfly to my piece. I always see butterflies around me. Sometimes they land on me and it makes me feel special. I also like to compare the human experience to the butterfly cycle. I think we start off as “caterpillars”, go through tragic experiences (in the cocoon), and eventually grow into the best versions of ourselves, transforming into a “butterfly”.