Arial Weiberlen

English 21002 

Professor Zayas 

Introductory letter 

February 5, 2026 

 

The Letter vs The Spirit 

 

Part 1 first impressions 

 

When first encountered, I am often mistaken for something younger that truly is. A baby face, combined with a height of approximately 5’4 and weight around 130 and 135 pounds, creates an illusion of youth. Facial hair development remains minimal, despite strong genetic evidence from the father, who is capable of producing a full beard by mid afternoon. Not being gifted with those genetics,  I require roughly a week and half to achieve visible growth, which remains patchy and uncooperative. Since meeting my husband I have gained an extensive collection of cologne. While strangers may enjoy the way Baccarat, and Jo Malone smells on me, my husband Marco finds my frequent use of it less appealing.

The way I try to carry myself , I think, is laid back. I think others can see that as well. At the same time, I don’t have a poker face, so whatever that isn’t said out loud, my face says out loud for me. It’s very obvious what I’m thinking, whether I want it to be or not. I usually dress in all black or dark colors since bright colors bother me and I don’t like standing out too much. My wardrobe is mostly black on black, or dark color schemes, casually I like to wear merchandise from my favorite DJs. A lot of it has darker imagery, like demons, blood, or symbolic themes. However if someone were to see me during the weekday they’ll see me in a hello kitty zodiac shirts, a Mona Lisa shirt (I got from the Luve), or a ramen shirt. I work at a pre-school so I try to wear shirts that’ll be interesting for the kids. Ms Frizzle but with t-shirts is the style I try to strive for as a teacher assistant. Strangers may either see me in a hello kitty t-shirt one day and maybe a shirt that says “svdden death” the next day. 

I’m gay, and I would hope or like to think that strangers’ first impression is that. Finding out a stranger thinks I’m straight hurts a little. At the same time I don’t dress in a stereotypical way, so I get why people assume otherwise. My casual appearance sends mixed signals.

Once I start talking those assumptions either get confirmed or completely fall apart. I don’t think I have a very “gay voice”, but it’s slightly feminine, and I’ve made peace with that. However when placed in an unfamiliar environment, my voice exhibits a fascinating survival response. My voice drops. My inflection hardened. The butch emerges. This adaptive behavior allows me to blend into the surroundings and avoid unnecessary threats to others (or straight males specifically). A remarkable talent of code switching due to years of being in an all boys high school. 

I can be confident, outspoken, sarcastic, and blunt, especially when talking about things i care about. I don’t like to beat around the bush, and I’m not afraid of debate or being open to listening to others opinions. Some people interpret this as aggression, for me, it comes from passion or anger mixed with passion. I care deeply about politics, labor rights , and social conditions, and I don’t shy away from expressing strong opinions. Because of this, some might assume I am loud, intense, or even “crazy”. Some of those assumptions may be fair however others miss the point entirely. 

 

Part 2 someone who knows me 

 

While a strange might think I’m young, careless or unserious, the people who know me well see something different. The person who knows me best is my husband, Marco. We’ve been together six years, and in many ways, he understands me better than I understand myself. He sees past what people assume onto me and recognizes the complexity underneath. 

According to Marco, “The first thing that comes to my mind when I think about Arial is his ability to quickly engage you just off his innocence once you get past that. You find a more complex person that advocates for situations that most people wouldn’t advocate for. He has deep feelings about conditions of the working class people and at times can be extremely unrealistic but his naivety is part of his endearing quality. What I most enjoy about Arial is that although he likes to push the enveloped and he always has to have the last word once you know get to know who he is you love him even though with those idiosyncrasies you see that he has a kind loving heart and if he loves you he will love you unconditionally. What most people wouldn’t know about Arial is that he is an Anarchist and extremely hard at accepting any form of constructive criticism and will challenge everything someone says and if he doesn’t know the fact will immediately google the facts after being wrong. If it’s up to Arial he would be conjoined to my hip in the grave in ten years.”

 

Part 3 real me 

 

At my core, I know who I am. I’m driven by the desire for a better life, not just for myself but for everyone I care about. I care about people, strangers, but I have no patience for cruelty or disrespect. I know that no system is going to save me if I fail to improve myself, and that knowledge pushes me forward. I value basic human decency: access to healthcare, education, living wages, clean water, and housing etc. They are necessities that shape everyone’s lives. I  refuse to think that any other human deserves less than these basic human decencies. I refuse to tolerate intolerance. I hold myself and those around me to share core values rooted in compassion and love. However I understand that not everyone deserves love and compassion. I had to learn that, in order to protect myself and others.  

Looking ahead, I want a continued life defined by peace with my husband and our dog, Lily. Hopefully with a child, preferably a girl named Olive. However my husband hates that name, maybe he’ll change his mind in a few years. I hope finishing school will allow me to move into a more stable and fulfilling career, possibly in nursing. I also want to grow out of some of my “naivety” while keeping my passion intact (although I don’t think I’m that naive but I guess only a person who’s naive would say that.) Ten years from now, I hope I don’t lose the part of myself that believes change is possible in the world, even when it feels unrealistic. Knowing myself, I’ll still believe it takes disruption to make real change.