My name is Phil Valer

Actually, my name is Philippe – pronounced like ‘fill up.’ It’s just that Phil is a lot easier to spell and say. You might think I’m French, and you’d be correct to think that if it wasn’t for my names being of French origin, but I’m a Peruvian-American.

I am the son of first-generation immigrant parents. My family originally came from the country of Peru, and, shortly after moving to the United States, I was born. I was fortunate enough to grow up in a mixed environment. With my parents, I’d only speak Spanish, and outside of the home, you’d find me speaking English. I say fortunate, but it didn’t seem like that at first. I grew up in a state where I was very much the minority. Now, things have changed, and my home state has become much more diverse; however, before all that change occurred, my childhood made me develop an inquisitive nature – perhaps one of the biggest takeaways from this period was that it helped define me. Questions such as “why do I look different from others?” or “who am I really?” would revolve around me as I grew up. The concept of identity and understanding yourself would be key drivers for myself as I navigated these many unfamiliar territories in life.

Have I answered the above questions? Not even close. Well, maybe the first one, but there are a lot of areas that I’m still trying to answer and understand in myself. That perhaps is one of the biggest lessons in our lives! Learning to understand the following: who are you and what do you want?

I’m still in the process of learning all this, and so my journey hasn’t stopped. In fact, I don’t think it will ever stop. I currently find myself traveling outside of the US and living on a small island known as Taiwan. This little island holds a special place in my heart as it was a place where tremendous amount of personal growth took place. To this day, it still is a place where growth and understanding are still occurring. Now I’m not telling you that if you are to understand yourself, you need to get up and leave your home country (although, for some of you, you should. There’s a lot more to the world than just the area you live in). However, there is something about leaving your comfort zone and exploring things that make you go beyond what you believe you are capable of doing.

I’ve learned a lot over the course of time, and I am still learning. In Chinese, there is a saying: one is never too old to learn. What I have learned, I wish to share so as to make another’s life better – no matter what age you find yourself in. Adding value to one’s life is such a fulfilling thing for me. So, join me on this journey known as life. Wherever you come from, from whatever circumstance you find yourself, I don’t care. I’m just glad that you are here today experiencing life together alongside me. So, let’s make the most of this life!

Cheers,

Phil Valer