Junk of the Heart

Bonjour. 

My name is Kirby, like the video game, but that isn’t my real name. I was born Angel Marie Chiaravalloti to a 15 year old, beautiful woman named Kelly. Kelly put me up for adoption, open with her and closed with my birth father, Taylor, when I was just 2 weeks old. I was adopted as Kirby ___ ___. (You might stalk me if I fill in the blanks.) I now live with a loving mother, whom I do call mom, and a brilliant dad, whom I do call dad. I do my best to always think of them as my “real” parents, but sometimes I find that difficult. My mom and I butt heads a lot, but ultimately, she’s my best friend. My dad is shy, but understands me better than most of my closest friends, not to mention he has a pretty badass mustache. 

You could say I started expressing my interest in the arts when I was 4; I took tap and ballet, I was always humming or singing a tune, and I would play little games by myself where I took on every role in a certain situation (For example, in a school, I would pretend to be the teacher as well as ALL of the other students.) From there, my passion for the arts grew, now more to a focus on musical theatre. I take jazz currently, and next year hope to continue my jazz studies as well as enroll in ballet. I perform in my school’s theatre department as well as at a community theatre called FMPAT. I hope to major in musical theatre at Boston Conservatory. 

My life is centered around music. Playing music, singing music, listening to music; all of it. I find most of my spirituality in music. I have a deep connection with Hawaiian music, and the songs “Love That Conquers” by the Swell Season, “Soul Meets Body” by Death Cab for Cutie, and “Hero” by Regina Spektor tend to the most spiritually enlightening songs on my iPod. (I know, sounds cheesy.)

I am an agnostic Unitarian Universalist. I attend a church with some of the most beautiful and “right” minded people I have ever met. I am a firm believer in gay rights as some of my best friends are gay, as well as my birth mother. I’m a democrat, which just goes right along with my faith. If you were to ask me if I believed in God, I would simply say, “Only if God is Morgan Freeman.” And that should tell you enough about that.

You will never find me without wearing certain pieces of jewelry, all of which serve a purpose in my every day life. Around my neck, I always wear a crystal, meant to represent tranquility and peace in a foggy world. I also wear the Unitarian Universalist symbol (a chalice.) On my left wrist, I USED to wear my weed silly band as an inside joke with my first and only love, but it broke recently. Now I wear my bracelet from Boston, a colorful almost Native American looking bracelet my friend Weslee gave me, and 2 Invisible Children bracelets. On my left hand thumb, I wear the ring my best friend Kimberly gave me for my 16th birthday, and on my right pointer finger, I USUALLY wear a 2-toned heart ring meant to represent love. (I think I lost that ring in the dressing rooms…whoops) I have 4 piercings, 2 in each ear which are usually filled with pearls or mismatched earrings. Soon I will be getting 1 more in each ear as well as my cartilage done on my left ear. 

I have a “tattoo” that I make on myself daily. It reads, “Give everything to a love that conquers.” I wear this on my left wrist as well. 

I have fallen in love. I am still in love. And truthfully, I always will be. 

I have the best friends that every person dreams of having. Jake Guy Horton, Kimberly Raquel Graydon, Austin David Lynch, and Emory Kathryn Jones: These people are everything to me. 

Family isn’t as important to me as I would like it to be; I’m working on changing that.

My two favorite places in the world are Boston and Kona Village, Hawaii. Boston because it’s basically Mecca for Unitarian Universalists, and Kona Village because it’s my second home. I find love on the seaside. 

And now I’ll end with just this simple little phrase:

Where soul meets body.

Thanks for reading,

Love always,

Kirby.