February 1, 2021

Arts and crafts is such a broad term for creating things. It is mostly used for children making noodle necklaces and flowers out of duct tape. I grew up surrounded with arts and crafts. My family loves all different types of creative entertainment. Whether it be my brother’s culinary practices or my sister’s murals, there is always something to take part in at my house. 

My oldest brother, Steven, loves to cook. He went to culinary school and worked at multiple restaurants since he entered the business. Culinary, in my opinion, is one of the most difficult jobs to enter. You are on your feet all day and, somehow, need to make delicious plates to serve within a certain time frame. It’s a job that you really need to love. I lack the expertise and enjoyment in the kitchen, so I know that it would not be the route for me. Although there are those bad and tiring days, he always seems to take something away from it. He can come home exhausted, but will still tell you about the weird stories that happened between his coworkers. 

“One time we were in the kitchen playing music and mind you there’s surveillance cameras but they can’t hear anything,” he says trying not to burst out laughing so hard from recalling the memory. “So with this song playing, I made direct eye-contact with Hugo and started dancing.” While trying to tell the story in between laughs, he stands up, plays the song and starts dancing like he did at work. By now, the room is filled with joyous laughs and chuckles. No matter how difficult his career may be, he enjoys it with all of his heart. 

The second oldest between the four of us is my brother, James. He loves to draw and animate designs. He has loved to draw since he was a kid. I remember seeing sketch books through the house, whether it be from his art class or drawings he made on his own time. He’s taking graphic design classes at the moment, but whenever he speaks about animation, you can see his eyes brighten up. That’s how you tell he really loves it. I remember seeing him create animations on his computer and being in awe because it seemed so interesting. When he saw me staring at his computer screen, he began to explain how it all worked. His face lit up as he showed me how to turn a simple, two-dimensional rectangle into a three-dimensional treasure chest. It seemed like something out of an Iron Man movie, where Tony Stark is moving all the shapes in mid air. I could only hope to be as creative as him.

Now, my younger sister, Mia, is one of the most creative among us. She can cook like a chef, draw like Picasso and sing like Stevie Nicks. I feel as if she got a little talent from everyone but her expertise is in music. She will go from belting Michael Buble’s version of  ‘“Feeling good” at the top of her lungs to doing a soft acoustic version of Billie Elish’s “Ocean Eyes.” When the pandemic began in March, our winterguard season had ended. It broke our hearts. One night, we suggested that she sing the song from our show, “Praying” by Kesha. I will tell you, my mom and I were in tears after she ended. Even writing this now, months later, I still remember the emotions that were felt when she sang. I remember tears flooding my eyes. I remember taking off my fogged glasses. I remember being transported back to practices with our team. Mia’s voice is something indescribable. She can be as powerful at Christina Aguliera’s “Burlesque,” yet soft as a lullaby sang to newborn. 

Now you heard about three of the four Vega siblings. I am the third oldest. My creative talent would be writing, but I wouldn’t call it a talent. It’s just something that I do. I have thought about pursuing dance or fashion, my two other hobbies, but whenever I feel down or bored, I come back to writing. It’s something that calls to me no matter what mood I am in. I may not be the best but it’s all I know and enjoy to do. I do have other hobbies, like I said. Right now, I have my sewing business with my sister. I mean you have to pay for college somehow, right?

( follow september.june2 on Instagram for more details about our sewing business)

I’m an English Major at Whittier College with hopes to enter the book publishing industry and become an author. In high school, I never could find the time to read, I barely found time to eat and sleep. Between classes and being colorguard captain, my life was full. During my four years of high school, you could say I lived, ate, and breathed colorguard. I was at school from six in the morning to almost ten at night( and that was a small day.) Sometimes we had double competition days where we needed to be at school by four or five in the morning to get ready for parades and we would not be home until midnight. Those were fun days though. My senior year, I, even, got a spot on the Pasadena City College Rose Parade team. So you could say I had no time left in my day. But like I was saying, with colorguard and school, I did not get the chance to read very often. Now that I am in college and my major is dedicated to reading and writing, I am going through books faster than I have ever done. I am having conversations with my English classmates as if we were in a book club. Reading and writing is a passion of mine that I love very much. 

So now that you have read about the four creative siblings, you can probably tell that our house is never quiet. Between Steven’s hilarious stories and Mia’s constant singing, our house is never calm and peaceful. There’s always some sarcastic words being thrown around, along with James’s saucy one-liners. Our family has too many different personalities that, somehow, mix very well. We all have our creative sides but you can say it runs in the family. 

My mom was into arts and crafts, such as painting and crocheting. She made sure to buy us crafting supplies whenever she had the chance. My dad used to be a musician in a band which is probably where our love for music comes in. Even my grandma had the creative side of cooking, which is where Steven sparked his culinary passion. They all love to read, which is why all four of us have some interest in books, whether it be listening to the stories aloud, reading the novels at lightning speed or taking in interest in how books are made.

 I believe my love for sewing and, overall, fashion comes from my aunt. I remember her always knitting or crocheting, like my mom. She surrounded us with the art of creating something from nothing. Every now and then, I’ll look at what I’m sewing and hope she’s proud of what I am doing and who I have become. Would she have liked the sewing business I have created? I hope so.