Last Day, Best Day

Wednesday was our last Soft Night. That afternoon, Hawi was in the mood to play, so for the first hour of freedom we pranced around the lawn playing tag and hide and go seek. Despite the campus' openness there were many nooks and crannies to hide in - we sure had fun releasing our inner child. The second hour, we walked to Barnes and Noble since our friends wanted to purchase some Vanderbilt merchandise. Although our outing wasn't out of the ordinary, it was emblematic of the silly nature of the friendships we've made at VSA. On our walk to and from the campus we took turns choosing songs, danced, and laughed at one another's jokes. I'll cherish these memories forever. 

Final Day Shenanigans

Thursday was our last full day at VSA. In my Novel Writing class we presented our novel pitches that we had planned the day before. Dr. Jan wanted to mimic the assignment around what authors may do at conferences: consisting of  a synopsis, a prospective agent and publishing company for our novels,  a novel competition that we'd like to submit our novel to, a query letter, the next steps for our novels, and what we learned. A literary agent is someone that author's hire to pitch there novels to publishing companies. A query letter is a letter written to an agent or publishing company seeking representation for your novel or to suggest writing ideas. This presentation helped familiarize me with the publication process - it's less foggy and I see it as an attainable goal in the years to come. My goals for my novel are to work, at the minimum, 3 hours a week; have friends and family revise my work; complete my first draft; revise, revise, and revise; then submit the completed novel to writing competitions and consider seeking an agent. The presentation went well: I felt confident with my novel and my material, my classmates picked my mind with interesting questions, and afterwards my teachers remarked that they enjoyed my presentation. 

That evening we attended a closing ceremony where we were congratulated for our hard work and accomplishments. I felt so much gratitude for the people who spoke to us about why they love VSA and why they keep coming back; they reminded us of what a beautiful community VSA is and how it's fit with people from different backgrounds, with different interests, and all positive and thoughtful intentions. I forgot that I was immersed with such bright, kind, and genuine individuals and I realized how different this experience has been from high school - it will be missed. 

The night ended with a dance. In our casual dresses we sauntered into the 80's themed dance floor, the lights were dim, the music loud, and the environment supportive but their was lingering sadness in the air. We danced the night away to a mixture of 80's and contemporary music. Hawi picked up a Yo-yo from the prop table and at the best times began letting it fall from her hand to add to her exuberant dance style. 

Our friend group!

Friday morning, we ate our last breakfast together and said our goodbyes on the patio to those departing to the airport. Luckily, our closest friends who lived on our floor - Meghna and Abbey- were leaving a few hours later, just like us, so we had more time to bathe in each other's presence. All packed up from the night before, we sat in the empty dorm rooms, played a few last game of cards and laughed before it was time to go. Although I was sad the last few days, it was a good sadness where my heart felt happy and full. I didn't feel like crying nor was I prepared. When Meghna's Mom walked through the dorm room and it was time to say our goodbye's I burst into tears, the same happened with Abbey. 

When Tori came walking down our dorm hall, Hawi and I embraced her, overjoyed. We grabbed our luggage then traveled to the floor above us to fetch Audrey and Anna. In the elevator, Tori surprised us with some interesting information - our connecting flight from Chicago to Philadelphia had been canceled. She wasn't sure what we were gonna do and neither did Don, she was informed of the unexpected turn of events only an hour before.

We drove to the airport, not entirely sure what we were doing, but we had a few options and ended up deciding to fly to New York then take the train to Philly. We spent hours waiting for our flight to New York, during which we ate food, talked to Tori, watched TV, played cards, and roamed the airport. Other than unwelcomed turbulence, the flight was uneventful. Once in New York, we drove to the train station, my nose was plastered against the window the whole time. I've never been to New York and was enraptured by the soaring buildings and bright lights - I was getting Mexico City vibes the whole time.

Outside the train station in New York

Waiting at the train station was worse than the airport. It smelled like fecal matter in some corners, was dirty, and much less cozy, not to mention it was 9 p.m and we were all exhausted. We spent the hours blurring out the train station with more comedic T.V shows. The train ride was pleasant, but we longed to be in a hotel bed. At around 1:30 this wish was granted.

Tired faces

On Saturday, after a well rested night we strolled down the warm Philadelphia streets to get breakfast at a quaint cafe then headed to our tour of University of Pennsylvania. The campus is very beautiful: there is plenty of greenery, old buildings, and friendly faces. First, we attended an information session where we learned the principles that UPenn operates under. They value students who wear many hats - they want a community filled with versatile, open, and bright students. Beth, our information session presenter accentuated the idea of students being mini Benjamin Franklins - the founder of the school, a philosopher, scientists, inventor, politician, the list goes on.

University of Pennsylvania

What I appreciated the most about UPenn was when our tour guide Brianna mentioned its supportive community. Whatever background you are from, problems you face, or story you want to share UPenn has a place for you. Professors live in the dorms near students, offering tutoring,  mentoring, or someone to have dinner with. Undergraduate students are also provided with two tutors during their four years in any subject. And there are plenty of organizations for an individual's religious, racial, sexual, or social identity. Accommodations are made to welcome students with wide arms to the UPenn community.

Following our college tour we had a quick meal then drove to Eastern State Penitentiary. The prison has towering rock walls and a Gothic castle-like entrance. The prison, at the time of its opening, was a revolutionary system. Inmates were kept in solitary confinement and given an hour of exercise time, this drastically contrasted the previous system where individuals were kept in a large chaotic room where they waited until they received a shameful public punishment or a disturbing death.

A dilapidated prison cell

What I enjoyed about the tour was that our tour guide, Brittany, emphasized that the museum is centered around planting a seed of conversation around the current prison system. She didn't steer us in any direction, but instead wanted us to think for ourselves how we can alter the prison system and seek better rehabilitation for inmates. I've always been interested in America's prison system: the high rates of mass incarceration, disproportionate amount of inmates who are people of color, the school to prison pipeline, and the privatization of prison. Those are just a few of its problems. Everyone has there secret radical view, mine is that I'm an advocate for abolishing the system and rebuilding it from the ground up, but that's another conversation.

In the evening, we headed to the the Philadelphia Observation Deck where after waiting in a long line and riding a cramped elevator up to the 57th floor we viewed the scenic Philly skyline. We arrived just as the sun was setting and were able to watch the light blue haze turn golden red then darken. The observation deck gave a 360 degree view of the towering and small buildings, the bodies of water, small cars, and distant suburbs. Although there were many annoying people who decided to stand in the way of the view and simply take pictures of themselves, I was still content with the gazing out the window and watching the convoluted city. Our lives and worries seemed so small in comparison to the vastness of the city.

The Observation Deck