People of UNF is a chronicle of students, faculty, university staff and visitors. The hope of this feature is to gain a closer look at those we see walking by us everyday, those we ignore and those we sometimes wish we knew better.

Photos by Kristen Smith

What are you insecure about?

“Every time I get really insecure, I just realize that everyone has someone that’s better than them, you know? They all have someone that’s taller, or more attractive, or more fit or something like that–better at something. So it’s cool. I don’t know why, I’ve just been dealing with it really bad lately.”

What do you like about yourself?

“All they [my friends] talked about was how bubbly I was, and how I never was sad. And so it made me afraid to ever just actually get frustrated with them. Because they’d always be like, ‘What’s wrong!? You’re always so happy.’”

What is your spirit animal and why?

“I’ve never grown up to fully embrace my independence and learn how to live without searching for help, and I feel like that’s what a tiger represents. Not looking for help, but helping others when they need it most. Not when you need it most specifically. So I know it also represents things like inner beauty, and grace, and being fierce. The whole thing of being strong and knowing that you can do things, just because you freaking can.”

Do you believe in any urban legends?

“I believe in, I don’t know, I guess gut feeling. I walked into a weird dark room one time and I got a bad feeling about it, and I was cold, so I left.”

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