Wednesday, February 01, 2012

Imbolc 2012: Free Advice

Imbolc 2012 has begun with rejoicing here at Chateau Johnson! All hail Queen Brighid the Bright, the Great Goddess of creativity!

Today an envelope arrived in the mail for The Spare. It was from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. She was accepted. Additionally, she was given a $16,000 annual scholarship. This scholarship recognizes her potential as an artist with a promising future.

Ironically, Spare almost didn't apply to the University of the Arts.

You see, Spare is one of those people who can't dig into standardized tests. Give her a number two pencil and a bubble sheet, and she just cringes. Therefore, when the SAT scores arrived in this household, they were greeted with a great gnashing of teeth and rending of garments. University of the Arts requires the reporting of SAT scores.

Spare never thought she would get in the door of that school when they saw her numbers.

Turns out -- and this will be bitter news to Snobville parents -- the numbers don't always cut it. With little to lose but her fifty buck application fee, Spare took her portfolio and her moxie to UArts for an interview. The lady who talked to her frothed at the mouth. A week later, Spare got her letter,

So here's my free advice to all you young parents out there who are worried about getting your kid into the right college. Instead of enrolling them in the right preschool, let them play in the back yard. Instead of making them do math homework, let them fool around with scraps of old clothing. Instead of parking them in front of a video game, get them outside: snowballs, flower walks, treasure hunts, hikes, fairy festivals.

For more than a decade, Mr. J and I have wondered if we've done right by Spare. First we nagged her about her grades, then we gave up and let her follow her Muse. Turns out the Muse is a bored deity. No big surprise there!

Congratulations, Spare! We may not be perfect, me and your dad, but we love you.

11 comments:

Debra She Who Seeks said...

Way to go, Spare! And what a terrific scholarship too! The world is your oyster today.

Anonymous said...

congrats!
--Kim

Maebius said...

Congrats, Congrats, and Conga Rats!
/dances with the vermin, happily.

Following one's Muse is much more fun, isn't it? Blessings to the budded Artiste! Well done.

-Pam said...

YEAH!

-Pam

PaigeKate said...

Congrats to Spare!

Makarios said...

Way to go! Well done--all of you!

Moma Fauna said...

Amen sister. Our kids are going to live to be 100. Why take those precious few years of childhood away?

Congratulations to you & The Spare from our entire household. :)

L.L. said...

As someone who dreaded standardized tests, I love this story. It's better to let people follow their Muse instead of forcing them into a mold of how they "should" be. And yes, let kids be kids and let them play!

Gruvkitty said...

Yay! That's wonderful news! I hope she loves art school. I'm a little biased, but I believe it teaches all sorts of big lessons like critical thinking, creative problem solving, and how to have confidence in yourself in the face of lots of forceful opinions. Best of luck to her!

yellowdoggranny said...

I'm almost as proud of her as you are.

batwench said...

Good luck and I am sure that she will have a blast. There is more than one kind of intelligence in this world and to be able to create something that brings joy to at least one person is one of the highest intelligences about.