Name: Simone Matthee

Social Media Handle/Username: @Fandom_Fairies

Introduce Yourself/Tell About Yourself: I’m an adult woman, though I still feel very much like a child.
I’m married to a beautiful man.
I’m South African but I’m not always proud of that.
I’m Christian, but not the awful kind that immediately comes to mind.
I enjoy writing things no one will ever read and drawing things no one will ever see and making things no one will ever use.

I do not tolerate anything that brings heartache to any living being.

What Inspires You Every day? : The little things.

Some days the sun and clouds will turn the sky bright orange. Other days the spiders spin webs exactly where my husband walks and I get to laugh at him.
I need to actively look for inspiration or I’ll miss it.

Most of the time inspiration runs low and I will need to create my own. Then it’s up to glitter makeup and new music or funny Twitter strangers to save the day.

What is some words of wisdom you live by?: Happiness is so hard to come by. When you have it, have it loudly and unashamedly.

What is your ultimate goal in life? : To create a space where I can feel completely safe.

How have you been during the pandemic and how has it affected you? : Some things stayed pretty much the same. I’ve been working from home for a while and I’m an introvert who prefers to stay in as often as possible.

Other things crashed and burned, but most of those things can’t be blamed on the pandemic… some of it can

What is a message you would like to give others? : Happiness shouldn’t be this hard to reach.

We need to make this world a better place so that happiness, kindness, acceptance and love can be more obtainable.

If the only thing you can contribute towards making the world better is a smile, then that’s enough.

What else would you like to tell others about you or your life?: I’ve had to deal with traumatic experiences that shaped my future way more than I care to admit. Every day is a new day for me to figure out how to turn that into something other than just “trauma”.

I’m not ashamed of how long it takes me to overcome things. I’m proud of how strong and victorious I am when I finally do. And I’m ok to drag along a few things I might never overcome. At the end of the day, I don’t live for anyone else but me.