students I believed in Santa Claus until
I was 12 years old one because I have a
very childlike imagination and two
because I can fathom the idea of my
parents having enough money to afford
the gift for three children most of us
grew up as blue-collar kids as did I in
my story my father like his father and
father before in brothers was a
construction worker who built houses
hospitals and took on as many side jobs
as he could to pay for a roof over our
head my mother cleaned houses toilets
and took care of elderly people to pay
for my future education neither of my
parents have degrees my brother never
graduated high school so when I told my
parents hey I want to go to college it
was a big moment for us when I told them
this back in seventh grade they were
worried how financially stable we would
be at the time with MA as time went on
with my 4.0 GPA and my work ethic they
suggested to me to take up a field in
medicine that didn’t sound like too bad
of an idea big house I could have a big
family I wouldn’t ever really need to
worry about anything because I would
have the wealth I needed so for six
years of my life I prepared to go to med
school I took the classes I prepared I
got in the really great schools I got a
lot of money in scholarships but then
senior year I did something that I
wanted to do for the first time in my
life my senior year I wrote a novel
called the ten and in your pamphlets
pamphlet it says I wrote a 10,000 word
novel that’s a mistake it was 50,000 I
would I would come home every day from
school at my bus lets me off at 3
o’clock
go to bed and then wake up at 8:30 I
would write until 3:00 in the morning
sometimes I would just stay up and then
go to school the next day and I would
email dr. Harold and send them all my
progress and I was having the time of my
life creating a little world of people I
wrote about ten friends living in New
York City and they all had their faults
I wrote about my friends they celebrated
their way through life through music art
writing dance everything that I loved
but it wasn’t until after I finished my
novel and I looked back on it and it’s
terrible by the way grammar mistakes
everywhere it’s just not the best but
people wanted to read it so I’ve just
recently let a teacher of mine start to
read it and so I looked back on it and I
looked back on it before and the first
time I did I realized what I wrote I
wrote exactly who I wanted to be and
where I wanted to be in life I didn’t
want to be a doctor or construction
worker or a nurse I didn’t want to be my
parents and that was okay so when I told
my mom that I wanted to go to art school
and I wanted to make art and I wanted to
make things that mattered to me and to
other people she was a little hesitant
saving a lot of money for the biggest
payout and then telling that telling
your parents that I’m going to be a
starving artist that I might have to eat
my paintings to survive not the best not
the best dinner Copic but I told them
and I cried because I was scared and my
mother cried because I hurt her feelings
but I didn’t hurt her feelings because I
didn’t want to be a doctor I hurt her
feelings because I didn’t tell her who I
wanted to be after I told her who I
wanted to be everything opened up in my
life I felt more comfortable doing art I
was better at it
I had more friends I could write a lot
faster and a lot easier I’ve written
many papers at 11:50 that were due at
midnight and gotten great grades on them
but that’s not the point I wasn’t happy
with my life as a doctor sure if I
wanted money that’s what I would do but
it’s not about the money
it’s about happiness and when I say
happiness I mean true happiness sitting
with your friends at eight o’clock at
night in Eaton parking laughing not the
fake let me sit here and smile for my
picture that’s not it it’s not and it’s
scary and it always will be but I don’t
think people especially my family
expected me to go on the route that I am
I am so scared to go I’m so scared to go
to art school that I’d be more scared
and upset with myself if I went to
medical school it doesn’t matter where
you come from or where your parents
expected you to be or who you even
thought you were last Tuesday it matters
who you are in this moment right now
right now I’m standing on a set of train
tracks and there is a train coming for
me faster and faster each day I can see
the light coming towards me and I mean I
either get off these tracks and get to
make every choice for the rest of my
life or I let this train hit me and baby
by my parents for the rest of my life
this is no Dig to parents especially
mine or anyone else who told you what
they thought was best for you they’re
only trying to help you but you in the
end have to make your own decisions on
things I chose to get off the tracks
I’m not sitting I’m not waitin I jumped
off early
and even though I’m scared and terrified
and you will be too if you’re changing
your life last minute you will always in
especially I will I will always be okay
because my roots will always be in my
blue-collar family and they’ll always
support me and love me but my branches
will be who I choose to be and what
decisions I make thank you [Applause]