15 Aug Second Time’s A Charm

When I was in the 8th grade, I wanted to attend a performing arts high school but I wasn’t sure where. However, I knew that the school had to have a prestigious dance program.

One day, I asked a friend what school she was applying to and she told me about this new school in the city. It was similar to Laguadia. After visiting their open house, I fell in love with everything about it. From the building, to the students, and the dance studio. I even envisioned myself being there and it felt natural.

So, after completing one of the requirements which was submitting my application, I also had to audition for one of the majors, so I chose my love; dance. I remember walking into the studio and instantly felt my stomach hollow. Looking around the room were dancers who were toned, flexible and exuded confidence. Some were either holding their legs above their heads, sitting in a middle split comfortably, or doing pushups. I was shocked and my confidence decreased the closer we got to beginning the audition. I could feel my fingers become clammy and my thoughts consumed with insecurities.

All of the negativity I was feeling was reflected in my performance. I struggled to keep up with the movements, forgot steps and was overall just a hot mess. I think I even cried after I finished. Struggling to answer my mother when she inquired on how I did, “I think I did okay…”, I sighed.

Flash forward the next few months, I received a rejection letter in the mail. Balling my eyes out, I didn’t know rejection felt so painful. At that moment, it was the end of the world for me, but that was until my family told me to shut up. My uncle, a no-nonsense type of guy, proposed two options:

• Quit and go to a high school in my town (which didn’t have a dance program)
• Try again and get into the school. Point. Blank. Period.

At that moment, that’s when my life had changed at the age of 13. By the time September came, I was a freshman on a mission. For the whole school year,  I attended a different school but it had a dance program. By the guidance of my family, I was encouraged to absorb all the skills I was taught, while still training at my neighborhood dance school in the evenings, and maintain great grades. My goal was to prepare for the next audition and get into the school as an incoming sophomore.

Six months later, I walked into the studio I had once felt tiny in like I was a giant in the room. I took up space and my confidence was like no other. Looking at my reflection in the mirror, I held my chin up, pushed my shoulders back, and was ultra focused on the movement. Executing everything even when I made minor mistakes, I kept on dancing because I knew that I belonged there. And it was only a short while later a letter in the mailbox has proven that to be true.

However, before receiving my acceptance letter, my uncle gave me one more idea to help me stand out. And that is writing an appeal letter. I didn’t know what that was called at the time, but now I do, since I help students write their own if they faced academic dismal from their college. In my appeal letter, I talked about my interest in the school and its dance program. I also mentioned my goals and why I believed that being in a dance major would propel me towards my dream of being a professional dancer.

I write this to share with you that you are deserving of your dreams and if you stay on course and embody them, it will come to you. It may take work but that’s just character development. The protagonist needs to go through some challenges not only to obtain their goal but to shape them into the person they are meant to be in order to live their dream.

If you have a dream, go for it. If you don’t get it the first time, or the second, or the third, that doesn’t mean it’s not meant for you. It’ll come in its own time. Time is an interesting thing that even I can’t fathom, but I do believe in the power of self-belief.

– Yani