Little petals are scattered about the kitchen floor,where only hours before a beautiful crown of flowers dusted the head of a real live pixie. That pixie sits in front of me now happily eating watermelon and sipping peach-ginger iced tea. She is wet from this afternoon’s splash in the creek, wearing a bright yellow t-shirt, and smiling ear to ear as we begin.

Emy: “What is your full name?”

Emma: “Emma-Kate Eyre.”

Emy: “What should people know about you? What is the first thing that comes to mind?”

Emma: “Umm, I’m musical! A lot of the things I do in my life revolve around music. I sing and play the violin, and I try to play the piano. I know about twelve chords which  gets me through.”

She is laughing between every other word. It’s not just a case of the giggles. She is a joyful, happy, spirited lady! The sunshine yellow she is wearing is perfectly fitting.

Emma: “…and the ukulele, but I don’t know if that counts.”

Emy: “What are your other hobbies and loves, favorite foods, etc.?”

Emma: “I like walking around. Just like, wandering and going for walks. Walking in downtown Winchester and not even talking, just walking.”

Emy: “Why? Because of the sights? Expound on that a little.”


Emma: “Just the feeling of being with someone that you cherish and be able to...hmm, I don’t know how to word this. Just being with someone in a different setting than you’re used to seeing them in normally and being able to get to know them better even if you’re not saying things out loud.”

Her expression changes thoughtful and kind, as if she has dear friends she’s done this with before. It is a fond memory kindling, and she gives me a knowing smile. Like the Mona Lisa she knows something I don’t. And she likes it.

Emy: “What are the little things in your day that bring you joy?”

Emma: “Well, part of my personality I guess you could say is I’m an artist… not in the sense that I can pick up a paintbrush and make something beautiful. I think that being an artist is being able to put pieces of your personality into everything you do. Just being able to take daily life and turn it into something beautiful. That’s kind of my goal, to take every little aspect of my life and turn it into it’s own art form.”

This girl is inspiring.

Emy: “What are some ways that you do that now?”

Emma: “Even the way I dress, or I do my makeup, or I do my hair, I try not to let other people influence that as much as what I’m feeling and who I am.”

Emy: “I am guessing you like fashion?”

Emma: “Yes!”

Emy: “Why and how? Is it a daily part of your life?”

Emma: “I like to organize my closet by outfits, so I’ll take an item out of my closet and just make outfits with that one item and the things that I have. It’s an obsession.”

Emy: “Now, I know because I know you that you have a photography something or other, yes?”

Emma: “Oh yeah! Photography is just a hobby. I dabble! I like that word. If I see something I like I’ll take a picture of it. Even like, Instagram. I like to take pictures and make it my own art form. That’s why I put so much effort into making things the way I want to.”

Emy: “Where did that drive for art and living in an artistic way come from?”

Emma: “I wasn’t very artistic until this year and I think it’s just something that came from me, I don’t know if it was influenced by anything!”

Emy: “What is a day in the life of Emma?”

Emma: “Oh okay!!!”

She busts out laughing.

Emma: “This may take a while! I wake up and lay in bed for like an hour to be completely honest, then I drag myself out of bed and in the morning and turn on my Hillsong radio. I only like to listen to Christian music in the morning. That’s just the way I like to start my day.”

Emy: “I do that, too! If I started my day with Lana Del Rey or something, then you wake up and first thing everyone is sad and lonely!”

We are both laughing now.

Emma: “Exactly! I love Lana, but not in the morning! Then I’ll go into the bathroom and sit in my favorite chair, do my makeup, do my hair, and everything. Then I get dressed and eat my breakfast and go to school. At school I start the day with show choir which has definitely been a blessing this year because I get to start the day with one of the things I love to do. Sing and dance and be happy and be with my friends! Then all the other classes don’t matter because they’re stupid things like learning. After school I’ll do dance, or violin, or orchestra, or choir practice again. I don’t know. I never have free afternoons, like ever! That’s not a thing!”

Emy: “Is that hard?”

Emma: “It is, but I enjoy it. So that makes it a little bit easier.”

Emy: “Would you call yourself driven?”

Emma: “Yes. If it’s something I love to do then I will do it no matter how much time it takes.”

Emy: “So after choir your afternoon is done?”

Emma: “Yes, then I’ll go lay on my beanbag and zone out and use my phone and be lazy I guess! Because there’s not much room for that!”

Emy: “Do you have homework in the evenings?”

Emma: “Yes, so I’ll do my homework and after homework I’ll journal, and that’s my God time. I’ll read my bible and that’s my settling down time. It helps me sleep better. I get everything off my chest and talk to God and just remind myself what my focus is. That’s one of the reasons I am going to Eukarya (a local school) next year, because they have chapel every morning and that’s something that’s really important to me. This year it’s been really hard without that to find time.”

Emy: “So, you’re in 9th grade?”

Emma: “Yeah.”

Emy: “How would you describe high school?”

Emma: “Draining. It gives you no time to do anything. It’s full of drama because there are girls.”

Emy: “Because this is a pretty prevalent issue (dealing with girls in high school) what advice would you give to other young women in your situation? I remember high school as an emotional rollercoaster!”

Emma: “Well, it’s like that! It’s crazy. I’m just trying to think, how do I get through it?”

She looks exhausted at the thought and is carefully considering her answer. Pensive and solemn.

Emma: “I count down to the end of every class, 20 minutes! 10 minutes! 5 minutes! I can do this! It’s like a workout. It’s a lot of countdowns, counting down to the end of the day, counting down to the end of the class, and the week, and the month, and the school year! It can be a lot of fun though, if you make a point of involving yourself with good people who aren’t causing drama.”

Emy: “How do you do that?”

Emma: “Well, when I find a friend I stick with them, unless they start going insane and I’m like, ‘What are you doing?!’ And when I find a good one, it’s like ‘You are here to stay! You are not leaving me!’”

Emy: “Find a good one? It’s like a gold nugget! Aha, I found one!”

Emma: “Yes! This one’s a keeper!”

Emy: “So, are you saying that’s how you get through the day? Spend time with good friends?”

Emma: “Yes, surround yourself with positivity. It’s good to have friends who are going through things, but just make sure it’s not just those friends because it can be kind of intense.”

Emy: “So you’ve talked about a lot of the hard things of your day. What are some of the ups? The things that make your heart sing? It could be anything …watermelon, Instagram…”

Listening to her re-cap a day in the life, complete with the ups and downs of high school, I am taken back to that season in my own life. It was hard and sometimes very dark, but there were always little things that lifted my spirit, that filled my heart and soul to the brim! Things as little as a watermelon.

Emma: “I love being able to just sit with my window open and feel the breeze and look outside and enjoy sunshine. I like sunshine a lot. I also have to keep in mind that every day has a purpose. It’s my wallpaper on my phone actually! This is the day that the Lord has made. No matter how bad it seems, you can always take it and flip it around!”

Emy: “What are some other little things like that? Open windows…”

Emma: “Books. Reading. Taking pictures of things that I do! Trying on new clothes, trying on new outfits. I’ve been going into my room and just thinking of new things I can do. I’ve thought about starting a blog actually.”

Emy: “I will read it!”

She laughs. Really, she’s been laughing the whole time. You have to meet this girl.

Emma: “Like cheap fashion! Doing things with what you have! I like to make things work.”

Emy: “Yeah, you do!”

I expound a bit and tell her since I’ve moved to this area I’ve watched her fashion choices, just like I do everyone’s, and have always loved her quirky/classy sense of style.

Emma: “Tea! Tea! I have an unhealthy obsession with tea! Except, it’s healthy I think. It’s an unhealthy obsession though. I actually have a tea maker in my bathroom! I wake up in the morning and go make myself a cup of tea. I should have included that in what’s a typical day! I make tea! And ginger, I have an obsession with ginger too. Gingersnaps, ginger tea, plain ginger with sugar!”

Emy: “Well, since we are on foods, what are your favorite foods?”

Emma: “I am trying to think. I know there is a favorite food, and I can’t remember it. Macaroni and cheese, of course. If there is macaroni and cheese somewhere, I will fill my plate with it, nothing else. Unless, maybe peaches. And smoothies. I like smoothies, that’s more of a summer thing. I can’t drink smoothies in the winter.”

Emy: “What are some of your life goals?”

Emma: “I think I want to be a voice teacher, because I know I want to do something with singing. And a lot of people are like, ‘I want to be famous,’ but I also want to be married and have children and have a life, so I think being a voice teacher is a realistic way to pursue that dream. Or I want to be Belle at Disney World. There is no in between! That would be the coolest job though. ‘Oh, what does your mom do for a living?’ ‘Oh, she’s Belle at Disney World.’ Life goal.”

Emy: “You said you want to have a life, get married, and have children. Is that a goal?”

Emma: “Yes, definitely. I want to have a husband. I want to get married young. I don’t want to be fifty going, ‘Oh, look I have a husband now!’ Go to college and get married. There you go!”

Emy: “Who are some of the most important people in your life?”

Emma: “Obviously, my family. I love them more than anything, even my extended family! I have so many cousins, and I love them all. And my close family, my two new brothers from Ethiopia. And my sister and my brother and my daddy and mi mami!”

Emy: “So you are the oldest of…”

Emma: “Five.”

Emy: “And you just adopted two. How has that changed your life?”

Emma: “It’s changed my life less than I expected. They just blend in so well, I can’t imagine life without them. I love them to pieces.”

Emy: “Are there any other people? Friends?”

Emma: “Yes! I have Ariel and Michaela. I have friends at school too that I love, but I feel like I can tell anything to my friends that I’ve had my whole life. Even though I love my friends at school!”

We bond for a few minutes over sweet friends and how an old friend is irreplaceable. They’ve walked with you, watched you change, for better, for worse, and they love you the same. Talking to Emma is too easy! We need to hang out sometime…or finish this interview and just talk. She makes a person feel so at ease. Now we’re talking about fashion. Okay, let’s get back to this interview!

Emy: “What is your dream vacation?”

Emma: “Dream vacation. Well half of me would say that I’d like to go live in the mountains and go kayaking and kill fish, but half of me would want…a bigger half of me would say I’d want to travel Europe and do a photo/journal thing, journal in general. Go to England and Paris!”

Emy: “Can I come, too?”

Emma: “Yes! Well, I did go before. I feel bad saying this. I did go, but it was before I discovered the artistic side of me. I noticed all of these amazing things, but I didn’t really know what to do about it. Now if I saw something I’d be like, ‘Pictures and I’m going to journal about it and just remember it forever.’ So if I could re-do anything, I would do that.”

Emy: “So you’re practically a new person this year.”

Emma: “Yes! I liiiiike it!”

Emy: “Have you seen any other big changes in yourself this year?”

Emma: “I don’t know, I guess the way I dress. I feel like my fashion sense has improved! Maybe a year ago I cared about how I dressed, but I didn’t know how. It was either absolutely terrible, like what just happened, or 100% inspired by someone else. I just took it from someone else and put it on me, and it didn’t look good! That’s changed, thankfully.”

Emy: “The whole artistic burst you’ve experienced is a big change!”

Emma: “Yes, I never thought I was artistic or creative at all before this year, and I am kind of just realizing the potential that I have…that I didn’t know was there before.”

Emy: “Where do you draw from for your inspiration to live artistically and beautifully?”

Emma: “Umm.”

She is trying to think of a deep answer, then bursts out laughing as she answers.

Emma: “Pinterest!”

Emy: “Yeah, girl!”

Emma: “That sounds so awful, but it’s true! I follow these accounts that are like ‘Oh my gosh, that is what I want to be,’ just that lifestyle of simple and happy.”

Emy: “What inspired your look for the styled half of your photo shoot?”

Emma: “I like flowers, they just make me happy, and I wanted to incorporate that. So, I started looking around on Pinterest. I feel like I’ve mentioned Pinterest like 70 times! But I looked around on there and started getting inspiration. That was the first thing that kind of struck me. I was kind of lost. Like I’m supposed to plan my dream photo shoot, what is my dream photo shoot? How do I do this? Then I was like ‘What do I like? I like music, I like colors, I like flowers, okay flowers!’ Then Pinterest just kind of took over and was like, ‘Here ya go, you’re welcome!’ “

Emy: “You could be an ad for them!”

Emma: “I know! I don’t know what I would do without Pinterest. Inspiration central.”

Emy: What is one of the biggest lessons you’ve learned this year that could be an encouragement to girls your age?”

Her giggling, laugh-eager spirit is adorably balanced by a calm, composed, thoughtful side that I fully trust to answer this question with both insight and honesty.

Emma: “I guess what I said before. Just take everything that is happening to you and see how you can change it, flip it on it’s head. And also journaling. People always say ‘I can’t journal; my life isn’t interesting enough.’ ‘Well, make it interesting! You’re the only one who can do that!’ “

Emy: “What about people who have a day that they can’t turn around?”

Emma: “Uhhh, sleep! Sleep and pray and EAT!”

She laughs.

Emma: “Make a bowl of macaroni, go snuggle, cuddle in your room, and go to sleep.”

She makes me think of that movie, “Eat Pray Love.” Emma’s mantra! Sleep. Pray. Eat.

Emy: “If you could use one word to describe yourself, what would it be?”

Emma: “Confidence. Definitely”

It took her less than seconds to answer. I believe it.

Emma: “I think people can mistake confidence as having a big ego, or being full of yourself, but it’s not! It’s important to have confidence in whatever you do.”

Emy: “Confidence’s literal translation is: The feeling or belief that one can rely on someone or something. Firm trust.”

Emma: “Wow.”

Emy: “You are so strong. I know girls who look up to you, who you inspire. You have such a joy and a freedom.”

Emma: “I had someone tell me that just the other day at school and I was like, ‘Oh, yay!’”

Emy: “You are a wonderful person! You are vibrant.”

She laughs hysterically, not negating that she is, in fact, wonderful, but in confidence, in giddy agreement. She is vibrant, and she knows it. There is strength, confidence, and kindness in her.

So I give you, the creative pixie herself, Emma Kate Eyre.

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