Hello everyone,

I hope that you are all having a wonderful start to the semester.

My name is Maribel Matos, although I do also go by Marbles or Maud depending on who’s addressing me. I personally identify with she/her/hers pronouns. I’m originally from the Dominican Republic, having moved to the United States when I was almost 3 years old. I grew up in Manhattan but moved out to Queens during the pandemic and have been enjoying the change of scenery so far. I’m majoring in Computer Information Systems, with a minor concentration in Business. The college process has been interesting so far, coming from a background where education was emphasized but not always helpfully supported by those around me. Switching to online education has been an odd experience as well, mainly due to it making things feel both more detached and altering how I have work to learn the material I’m being presented.

A picture of a reptile, specifically a bearded dragon lounging on a green hammock. He is making a sour-looking face.

Pancake the Bearded Dragon.

I’ve chosen to share a picture of my bearded dragon, Pancake, who is no longer with us. I originally met Pancake when I was in my first semester of college, and feeling really confused and lost about the direction my life was headed in. I saw him at a pet store, near 125th st. He was the only bearded dragon left for sale in the store, and I was told that he had been a bit like the runt of his clutch. His siblings had bullied him and even nibbled off one of his toes. I related to that story instantly. He wasn’t for sale when I had come in, with the store manager telling me that someone who worked for the store had already set a claim on him but was waiting for payday to officially buy him. I was told to come back on a different day when they would have more bearded dragons in the store. I showed up on the intended day, and found out that the person who planned to purchase Pancake had backed out. I immediately scooped him up and took him home. Over the next three years, Pancake was my best friend. He would walk across my laptop while I would do school assignments, give me the stink eye from his cage when he didn’t get the treats he wanted, and would fall asleep in my arms like a spoiled reptilian baby. I miss him terribly. I hope that wherever he is in lizard afterlife, that he’s being shown the royal treatment.