in praise of amigas

Not to break from the last entry, but can I just say,

OH MY GOD, I’M GOING TO HARVARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[insert high-pitched, girlish scream here]

Okay, breathe, la persona, breathe. The point is not the place; for many people, admission to H.U. is no big deal, and for far too many, it’s too big of a deal. For me, however, it’s not so much about the school as it is about the impossible. My whole life I wanted to go to Harvard, but who am I kidding? I always knew I’d never get there. College alone was really rough for me. Believe it or not, I actually flunked the mandatory freshman PE class, and at one point, dropped out altogether. By the time I finally graduated, I was all but burned out. Not only was I not going to Harvard, I would not be going to graduate school. Well, I should say, if it were not for a little help from my friends.

“You need to go to graduate school!” my roommate urged me. “God gave you a gift, and you need to use it.” But I just shrugged her and the others off.

After two years of this, however, I finally conceded. I would apply to Big State University, the one that may not have had the greatest rankings but where almost everyone in my hometown ended up going. So there.

Then I received a call from my good friend, M.H., whom some of you may known.

“You need to go to graduate school,” she said. It was not a question.

“Okay, okay,” I conceded and divulged my plan to try my luck at BSU, which to me was already a bit of a long shot.

“No,” she insisted, “You need to go to Harvard. You’re talented and fabulous and I won’t let you sell yourself short. You’re too good to settle for less than the best, and I’m not letting you get off the phone until you say you’ll at least consider it.”

She’s crazy, I thought. But my cell minutes were running short and I needed to go, so I reluctantly gave her my word.

Forced by conscience to make good on my promise, I arranged and interview with the admissions office – and promptly fell in love with the place. It didn’t take long before all of the other obstacles that stood between me and my childhood dream fell into place: GRE scores, recommendation letters, transcripts, personal statements.

By August – a full 4 months before the deadline – everything was set to go. Meanwhile, I entertained my second “major” relationship, sold or gave away most of my belongings, and moved to another country. I didn’t think much of the process because I was too busy with other things, and besides, I had spent too much of my life worrying away what few chances I had.

Well, come this evening (and my hands are still shaking from shock as I type this), and I´m in! Who would have thunk? I am so amazed and blessed.

Really, then, this post is not so much about Harvard than it is about those special people in your life – the kindred spirits, if you will – who will not let you forget who special you are – no matter how ill-founded or ludicrous their faith may be. This post is a tribute to them to – girlfriends. amigas. The ones who stood by you and were there to remind you that you didn’t need a man to follow your dreams. Friends like my roommate, who, when I bombed the GRE math section on my first try, and I didn’t plan to retake it due to financial pressures, offered – no, insisted – to pay the full $130 fee. We finally worked out an arrangement that she would give me $10 for ever 10 points I improved my score. Later she made arrangements for which she jokingly referred to as the “PHTSS” – The Post Harvard Traumatic Stress Syndrome, for those souls who have staked their life meaning on admission to this fine institution, only to find out that once they graduate that it doesn’t mean so much.

And so, really it doesn’t. These friends of mine mean so much more to me than any gilded degree.

I only hope that I can be that kind of friend for someone else too someday. So let´s here it for the amigas in our lives that gave us that inimitable sense of adventure even when the guys were in short supply.

P.S. In keeping with the last entry, above is a beloved screenshot from Gilmore Girls, when Rory and Loralei visit Harvard and I believe both were between men (and certainly pre-Logan). Who says you always need a man to have a little fun? :-) Oh my God, I´m going to Harvard!!........