Anastasiya
Who is Anastasiya, really?

Who is Anastasiya, really?

I feel like I reinvent myself everyday. I learn so many things, that I feel like I am evolving by the minute.

Is this something every twenty-something year old experiences? Who knows.

Hi! I’m Anastasiya and this is my (condensed) story.

I was born in the beautiful city of Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital. If it was up to me, I would have stayed there for longer, but my parents had different plans. A few years after my birth, we packed 12 suitcases, and made our way to a land far away that made us countless promises.

Our immigration to Canada had major effects on my family, which I only saw when I got older. We had no money, we lived on welfare, and my mom was working 3 jobs just to give my sister and I the life she thought we deserved.

It was difficult for my parents to find jobs with their limited English, but now 20 years later, my mother works for the most prestigious Bank in Canada, and my father is a well-versed language teacher. Throughout my childhood and adolescence, I feel like my parents were there for me. In an Eastern-European way, but I could feel their love.

And I think that’s what helped me become the multi-faceted individual I am today. They enrolled me in all the extra-curricular you could imagine (thanks to Canada’s subsidized programs): dance, tennis, summer camps, theatre, singing, piano, Saturday school, swimming. I’m now beginning to wonder what I DIDN’T do.

This exposure to various hobbies pushed me to audition for the voice program at my high school, De La Salle. To be honest, this was the best vocal program you could do at my age through an educational setting across Canada. I could see it at the time, as almost every choir we listened to, we knew we were better.

Now you may be thinking that this is a bit cocky of me, but I don’t see anything wrong with knowing the worth of something. We toured all of Europe, won all the competitions we set our mind to, and even managed to sing a mass at the Vatican. I was 14 years old.

I will cherish these memories forever, and my vocal capacity flourished thanks to the rigour of this program.

Contrarily to common rationale, I did not continue with music in University. I instead decided to pursue Psychology, because that was something I was passionate about as soon as I discovered it. I did not regret it for one second, as I did not want to mix my love for music with being forced to do it.

When I graduated from the University of Ottawa with honours, I immediately bought a one-way ticket to Europe with a single backpack. It was the first time ever that I did not have a plan for what I was going to do next. I just wanted to explore what the world had to offer.

My self-discovery journey was a few months in already, so I had a passion for life and adventure like never before. I spent some time in Bulgaria, Ukraine, and then Malta, to visit a friend.

One thing led to another, and my intuition told me to stay in Malta. It was a risk, but I wanted to remember taking this decision as a young 21-year old that had no restrictions in her life. And that’s what I did.

I got an amazing job at a school for autistic children, and continued to grow within the company to a team leader position half a year later. It was going great, and in fact my time in Malta helped me flourish into what I can now call an up and coming business idea.

It was in Malta that I released my very first song, and it’s like something had come over me. I never understood how people could just “come up” with a melody, but it came to me. It’s like I was possessed but in a good way.

Since then, I wrote 5 more songs, and am continuing to write to this day. Living on my own in Malta, far from friends or family, has taught me so much about resilience and self-reliance. This sprouted my creative side to the max.

I am so proud of myself for slowly growing and following my intuition, because now I I have over 50 posts on this website, ranging from motivational videos, travel vlogs, blog posts, and of course my songs.

I am doing something I love, that I am passionate about, and I think this encompasses me as an individual.

Thank you for joining my on this journey. If you’re looking for a sign to follow your gut, this is definitely it. Go!

In my spare time, I like to read (mostly non-fiction), sit by the beach and journal, and meet my friends to do anything and everything we feel like. I like to swim long distance, play volleyball, go hiking and camping, and of course, travelling!

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