EMPRESS

About me:  Hi, I'm Sumin, and a Digital Arts and Sciences major. I was born in South Korea but raised in the small town of Apopka, which I usually just describe as "a town near Orlando." My favorite shows are Brooklyn99 and the Good Place, favorite movie Howl and the Moving Castle, and my favorite book, Momo by Michael Ende. Also I just really like Ghibli and Disney/Pixar animation stuff. My favorite artists are Lauv, HONNE, Yaerin Baek and IU. (Sad gorl hours!) As for hobbies I enjoy playing games, painting, baking, reading, watching youtube videos and movies, as well as doing DIY stuff. I guess I'm pretty much fond of whatever activity sitting down, lol. I am an absolute night owl and if you need a friend to talk at 3 AM, I will most likely be awake and would be happy to engage in a deep talk. You may quickly discover that I'm pretty quiet in conversations, but that's mostly because I'm more listener than a talker. In addition, I rotate between INFP (mediator) and ISFP (adventurer) in personality, and I am a Huffleclaw. What this indicates is that I may probably be a little nervous when I first talk to you, but in the end, I am very affectionate and pretty fun to hang out, as some of my friends refer to me as a "calm crackhead." My #1 language of love is quality time and #2 physical touch and acts of service. Finally, my future goals are... Hmm, I have many things I want to accomplish, but I ran out of space! Guess you'll just have to discover by talking to me, yeah?

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Why EMPRESS? Truthfully, freshman me would have never imagined I would be interested in joining an interest group or any form of a sorority because I've never enjoyed being in a large crowd of people. In the middle of a conversation, I would suddenly get so anxious - to the point where I had trouble conveying words across - and because of this, I was extremely shy growing up. I did manage to form a small circle of friends, but even among the small group of friends, I never felt completely open to talk about my culture and the difficulties growing up in an immigrant minority, because I felt they wouldn't really listen anyway. I had long accepted my anti-socialness as a part of me, but I also knew a part of me always wanted to break out of the chain of nervousness, to come out of comfort zone, explore the unknown, and meet people who I could truly connect with. I joined EMPRESS because I wanted a support system of a group of girls who I truly vibe with. It being an Asian group but not Asian exclusive group and its philanthropy being mental health, I imagined that many of the members of EMPRESS could share a similar experience as me and hence, an unspoken understanding to what it means to live a minority (or depressed/anxious) female in the 21st century America. I wanted to grow into a better person, and to one day become the one to encourage other womxn to pursue her aspirations. (And frankly, I think I got what I wanted!) In my opinion, what makes EMPRESS special is that we share positivity and support each other's aspirations without forcing one to forfeit individuality. It makes me feel so warm that the members really know one another, and genuinely care about each other. I love that although we are comfortable enough to call this group a home, we always remember to respect each other and try to motivate each other - to help the other members become the best version of themselves.