Yueyang, Hunan, China --> Houston, Texas
Hey y’all. My name is Hannah Sawyer. I am 22-years-old and am from Houston Texas. I was born in Yueyang city and adopted from Changsha, Hunan, China when I was 9-months-old.
I grew up with my mom, dad and sister (who was not adopted and is 11 months younger than I am). I also grew up with my grandparents and aunt, uncle and cousins who are more like my siblings. I have a Bachelors of Fine Arts in art, and I am currently working on my master's degree to become an art therapist. I love art, movies, traveling, camping, and I swam competitively for nine years.
Being adopted was something that I’ve always known and never really cared about. I have no trauma or negative feelings about my adoption; I was never bullied for being Asian, and I am extremely grateful for my family that I have been blessed with. But, for a long time, my adoption was just something that was a part of me that I didn’t pay much attention to. All I knew was that it happened and, now because of it, I have the life I’m living.
"It really wasn’t until my senior year of high school and into college that I started to become curious about my birth culture."
It really wasn’t until my senior year of high school and into college that I started to become curious about my birth culture. I began exploring this culture through making artwork, watching Chinese TV shows and movies, listening to music, and now I’m learning some Mandarin. I am extremely grateful to have my best friend (who is Chinese and was raised with her Chinese parents) to help teach me and help connect me to that part of myself. I am planning a trip to China for after I graduate. I now love learning about where I came from and will continue to learn and grow. Thank you for listening to my story.
Accessibility
[Description: Dusty pink background with a collage of photos. The photos show Hannah currently, as a baby and a child. Large text at the top says "Hannah." Small text at the bottom says "Yueyang, Hunan, China to Houston, Texas." Blue heart outlines surround the photos.]