Today I got a letter in the mail from NYU. I applied early decisions and yearned more than anything for a very long time to go there. I loved the school but more importantly I love my city. It's part of my art and creating anything in any other city seems empty. This letter told me they just couldn't accept everyone and thanked me for trying. Bummer right? Well, yes. I have worked hard to get into the school and think I deserve it. The end? No.
Today a close friend of mine, Lex, told me something that meant a lot to me. At the time I brushed it off but reflecting on it now, I realize it's beautiful verity.
He said that when he left his old school he was bummed out. But looking back at it now, it was a good move because he met me.
I think about all the good times I have had with the kid and how, quite easily, we could have never known each other, a thought that seems ridiculous. A life without Lex? Who would teach me about Zappa and John Waters? That's no life worth living.
It seems this logic can be applied to the situation I am in now. There are two reasons I won't let this knock me over. The first being that I don't need to be in any group of people to do what I want to do. I know what I want and would love as much help as possible, but whether I'm sleeping in a dumpster or in an Ivy League I will make the best out of whatever situation I am in. Call it devotion or call it resilience I, simply, don't need ANYTHING to be happy. Just friends and two eyes. No school can take that away from me. It's mine. That means a lot.
The second reason I won't get bummed out is because I am happy with two other schools that I am pretty certain I could get into. One is SCAD and the other is The Art Institute of Chicago. The latter is ideal for me and in many ways I love it more than I did NYU. Crazy part is, guess who wants to go there? Lex.
That's right, the person who taught me a very important life lesson wants to go to the school that, deep down inside, I think is better for me than NYU.
Do things happen for a reason? I have no idea.
Will I run out of Zappa tunes to listen to and John Water films to watch? No.
So, my dear dear friends I want to tell you this news. Everyone has told me they think I can get in and that means a lot to me. The fact you rooted for me means more than any acceptance letter anyone could write. I love you and want you to learn what I did today.
It takes strength to get to the top. It takes a man to get up when he's knocked down.
Stay up, fellows. Stay up.
So, I put my arms up (like in the picture below) and say "Eh, oh well".
Godspeed, starlets.
7 comments:
I'm sorry to hear about the NYU rejection...that school is so competitive, almost too much for its own good!
But I absolutely agree that if you have the drive, you can do whatever the #$#& you want, independently from any establishment....all any of us need really are hopes and some support from those who care.
I'm sure wherever you go and whatever you do, you'll be following your dreams regardless.
Are there any other schools around the 5 boroughs with good film curriculums?
AWWWWW kevin i would give u a hug but the internet gets in the way. this really fucks up my plans cus it now means that im hopefully going to go to the city as u leave it
Kevin,
On the train ride home last night, I got to thinking about New York City. I thought about how NYU deaded you and about how you will have to be separated from the city you love.
I’ve moved around almost all my life. Just as I’ve started to become comfortable in a place, almost always I end up being ripped away from it. In my life I’ve called 11 places home. What I learned from this is that YOU decide wether or not you are happy somewhere.
New York City is amazing. The homeless that crowd Washington Square Park, showing you their shanks and selling bud and shrooms. The darkened alleyways which yearn to be explored, each harboring their own history of how somewhere sometime someone hit rock bottom. Each stone and streetlight has a story to it, each scuff mark on a dumpster deserves a short story. There is enough wonder inherent in a single stoop to fuel whole novels about Wall Street Tycoons and artists who have sold their whole lives to pursue their delusioned manifestos. It is the capital of the world. Having to leave it must seem like having to leave your entire life behind you.
There are two things that can come out of you having to leave.
One is that you go to Chicago or wherever and have a terrible time. Every day you will wish you were walking the cobble stoned streets of SoHo. If this does happen, it will make your reunion with the city that much sweeter.
The other, is that you realize that while New York City is amazing, there is an entire world outside of it. Places with magic and nuances which can put New York City to shame.
You are too much of a person to allow yourself to be defined by a city. If the first possibility comes true, then you are admitting to yourself that everything you are is a result of a geographic location, not a result of you, your family and your friends. I’m sure that once you live in another place, you will realize how wide and wonderful the world is. It’s like first smoking a Camel after a lifetime of smoking Marlboros (and just imagine how many brands of cigarettes there are in the world).
My advice? Buy yourself a ring at your favourite store in the city and wear it as a reminder of all the good times you’ve had in the city. Oh, and every time you walk past those purple NYU banners, give them the finger and curse the place to be swallowed whole by rising sea levels (I’m sure the place has a high suicide rate for a reason).
- Bruno
kevin i think its rediculous that you didnt get in. its an outrage and it was just affirmative action. and im willing to bet that. but i have something to make you feel better. http://atasteforthetheatrical.com/deathtrap/default.htm
the first official batman trailer. also looks rediculous. in a different perspective.
if i could write as much on my essay as bruno wrote in his comment i'd be in good shape
oh and fuck nyu
Hang in there, Kevey. NYU pretty much sucked for me when I went there and it was really only the people I met there that made a difference. No matter where you go, you will flourish So let the universe open up some surprises for you.I imagine it being one of the joke lines you can say on a late night talk show-yeah, I got rejected by NYU film (audience roars with laughter).. love, Aunt Pat
they're smart
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