I may now carry the sash of Miss Universe, but I'll forever be your Miss Philippines.

Catriona Gray

Categorized in : Your Miss Forever Universe

I just constantly tell myself that I should be the only one to define my worth and what I'm capable of and how I perceive myself. And that I should never source that worth from other people, especially strangers on social media. They don't know who I am, the length of my journey, who I am as a person.

i-am myself social-media journey

I'm constantly trying to redefine what being a beauty queen is.

queen being trying beauty

People should debate. They shouldn't be afraid to talk. You should listen to what other people think and how they make decisions. There should be an exchange of ideas and opinions because that's how we learn.

you debate people ideas

My strength is that I'm an empath.

Being a beauty queen was never on my radar.

queen never being beauty

Philippines, what an amazing honor it has been to carry your name across my chest and to embody you in all aspects.

name amazing you honor

I am very open to learning. I am like a sponge: I'd like to soak up in new things, new skills.

i-am new new-things learning

Social media has definitely revolutionized or transformed the world of pageantry, and not just pageantry, but any social cause that we like to lend our voice to, how we inform each other, how we connect.

social-media media voice world

I work a lot in the slums of Tondo, Manila, and the life there is poor and very sad. And I've always taught to myself to look for the beauty of it and look in the beauty of the faces of the children and to be grateful.

myself sad work life

If I could teach people to be grateful, we could have an amazing world where negativity could not grow and foster, and children would have a smile on their face.

smile grateful children people

To see that I have this huge platform now, and so many people are listening to what I have to say, it really makes me want to orientate toward something that would really educate people, create awareness, do something more than just show them a cute outfit or what I'm having for lunch.

me lunch cute people

Even if someone does say something negative, it does not give us a reason to retaliate; just take the high road and don't say anything.

road say someone negative

Miss Universe is someone who communicates her thoughts effectively and is able to connect to people.

thoughts someone universe people

I just feel like a Filipina, a Filipino woman, and it just so happens that when I was growing up, I was very much an Australian, and I think you can be both.

woman feel think you

We Filipinos bond over food, music, dance, and shares stories. And to Filipinos, no matter who you are and where you come from, you always have an invitation to celebration.

you music dance food

I think we are moving to that place where we are being celebrated for our character, our inside, our wit. I think that's the direction we should go because that's what defines you as a person, not a number on a scale.

place think you character

I was born in Cairns, Queensland. Then my parents and I moved to Sydney. We moved to New Wales. We moved around Australia. I was just really close to my parents, and actually, we moved around a lot when I was very young. I think it played a big part in making me the shy teenager that I was.

parents new think me

I'm very mindful that I am representing the Philippines, so I cannot voice an opinion that contradicts that of our leader, Pres. Duterte.

i-am opinion voice leader

When I was young, I did varied after-school activities - I did art, drama, science, math. I'm not the sporty kind of person, but I did get a certificate on outdoor recreation.

person drama science art

I loved numbers from a very young age. I feel like my mom led me there because, instead of giving me Game Boy and PlayStations and a TV, she gave me educational software on our family computer for Math and stuff.

game me family age