Bryton (pronounced Brighton) has a soft, squishy heart and a strong mind. She knows who she is, what she likes and cares deeply for others and all living things. She is smart, and whenever she laughs, it makes me laugh harder. I like to make her laugh. She is my best friend and my sister and we always have fun together. She is a passionate yogi and a creator, always making something new. I know that she always hears me and cares what people have to say. You can turn to her for anything you need, so I recommend doing so. You’ll be happy you did. Meet Bryton.  

How do you find joy in your life?
I find joy in my life by living in the moment. It’s easy to get wrapped up in stressful things and by living my day literally second by second. Doing that I can enjoy every minute of what’s going on. That way I can find joy in every moment of my life.

At what moment do you think you figured out what kind of person you wanted to be?
I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my short life. I think I figured out what kind of person I wanted to be when I moved away from home to Arizona. That forced me to make decisions on my own and for myself. I went to school and made a life out there. I got to be alone and reflect and things I had done and that brought me to who I am today.

What have you learned by living away from home for so long, and then coming back?
Haha..exactly that. I learned who I am. I can gratefully say that I am proud of who I am, I like who I am. And that’s what I learned from living in a different state for so long. I didn’t have to answer to anyone or try and please anyone. I got to be myself.

Tell us about dogs and how Oso changed your life.
I literally teared up reading that question. I don’t know what I’d do without Oso. I was living alone in Arizona in a terrible neighborhood with a rent payment that was too high and I was just struggling. I rescued Oso and everything I did became about taking care of him and I. I felt like I had a purpose of taking care of a little living animal. As I type this he’s laying on my shoulder dreaming and growling. He’s my little shadow, if I leave the room he follows. He’s perfect and he’s my little best friend.

Tell us about your career and why you chose it.
I chose to go to cosmetology school because I love to make people feel good about themselves. I was bullied in high school about certain things, especially my hair color, and I didn’t want to every make anyone else feel the way I did. I know how much my hair means to me and I know it means a lot to other people too. I’ve had so many clients cry after their service and I’m always like “great, they hate it”, but then I have them tell me how beautiful they feel. That’s also something that brings me joy. It’s little things like that that make my career so important to me.

How important is it to have a positive outlook?
A positive outlook is the most important thing to have. Life is never going to be perfect. But your perspective can be perfect. Like I said, I’ve made some really poor decisions before but I can honestly say that I’ve learned from them and I feel like I was meant to make those decisions in order to become who I am. We can choose to “suffer” from life or we can choose to flow with life and keep a positive outlook in order to truly enjoy it.

Tell us about one of your heroes.
One of my heroes is my sister, Whitney. I’m not just saying this because I know she’ll read it haha.. I mean it. She’s so amazing. She’s one of the only people who has never judged me. She’s my best friend. I look up to her in her professionalism, relationship, and friendships. She’s level headed, understanding, and compassionate. I love her and I look up to her and always have.