I am unusual, by the standards of today's society. I have short hair, I refrain from drinking and partying, I'm a huge bicycle nerd, I am unapologetically myself. I wasn't always like this, though.

Growing up in a small town, with older siblings that the teachers loved, I felt I had to stand out in my own way. I wasn't particularly interested in school or good grades so naturally, I tried to shine in sports. I wasn't very good at those either. I was good at marching to my own beat, though.

My parents raised me to try everything, even if it scared me. They raised me to have faith, to believe that I always have a choice in life, that my life has a plan and that wonderful things are in store. They taught me to not care what other people thought, to stand apart from the crowd. They taught me to be fearless.

The fearlessness shows itself in different ways. From costume design to mountain biking to shaving my head. There's a sort of happy peace doing what you love and letting the worry of judgement from others fall on deaf ears.

I've always been a strong believer that if you really like something, even if it's deemed weird or uncool, you should do it anyway. There is no point in worry about what other people think of you. They are not the ones living your life, you are, do what brings you true genuine happiness and screw the rest.

The next time you want to try something but immediately turn it down because you're scared, for whatever reason, take a breath. Count to 10, let that fear have that long and then let it go. Let yourself at least try it before immediate rejection. You'll thank yourself later, you'll be able to say, "hey! I tried that! It was scary but I did it!" You'll defiantly make all sorts of memories that way!

So be true to you.

Be fearless.