Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - November/December 2012 - (Page 29)

immersion Before my first year of high school, a friend of my mother’s suggested that I attend the weeklong Great Books Summer Program held at Stanford University. I assumed it would involve reading and analyzing great literature, which I loved to do. As it turned out, choosing to attend was also one of the best creative decisions I ever made. We began each day by reading literature, which included short stories by Franz Kafka, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Julio Cortazar, and Italo Calvino. Afterward, we attended lectures given by program staﬀ or Stanford humanities professors about ideas presented in the literature, and then broke into smaller discussion groups. The rest of the day was devoted to art or literature electives, writing, presentations by guest speakers (including famous poets, prominent authors, and even movie directors), and evening activities such as ice cream parties. In between, there was a lot of music, art, running around, and game playing. Although I was shy, I quickly made friends with the like-minded kids there. renewal On the second day of camp, Dr. Laurence Yep, an award-winning author of more than 60 books, visited as a guest speaker. I had read and loved some of his books, like Dragonwings, The Golden Mountain Chronicles, and Child of the Owl. It was the first time I ever met the author of books I’d read. Dr. Yep explained that he had pursued a career in science before realizing that storytelling was his true calling. He talked about his life as an author. Then he told us a ghost story. Through his words, the cold night winds of his tale began to blow around in the warm classroom. There was an oppressive presence in the story—a ghost who brought great peril to the land—and a boy caught in its terrifying path. I could hear the cautious footsteps of the young protagonist as he anxiously plotted a way to get around and outsmart the ghost. I didn’t even need to shut my eyes to take in the imagery. When the boy triumphed over the ghost and Dr. Yep finished his story, we all applauded...and in my mind, something clicked. I remembered the times I had made people laugh with my impressions of the blundering Mr. Narwhal and the short-tempered Bird Man. I remembered the stories of my father’s childhood I had enjoyed so much when I was young. In that moment, my passion for storytelling was renewed. My mind raced with determination to return to the hobby I had loved as a child. elective that was especially powerful. The instructors provided helpful prompts and encouraged us to wander the beautiful campus to find topics to write about. At the end of the week, the campers and instructors assembled an anthology of students’ original work, and we each shared a piece of our work at a performance featuring students from all the camp’s creative electives. I presented a poem I wrote about a mad woman who had recently escaped from prison and who had a strange obsession with her hands. It was an odd poem, and I even thought that when I was writing it. I had written it in about 15 minutes after nearly burning my own hand on a sun-heated railing. My goal was to write about something spontaneously, without overthinking it. The exercise also tested my ability to tell a story in a limited form and to experiment with something I had never written about before. The audience was very encouraging, and I felt my confidence returning. One of the highlights of the final performance was the drama elective’s program titled Metamorphosis. The students all presented either an individual or partnered performance about an event in their lives that had changed them or defined who they were. One camper used lights to create a mood as he talked about his struggle with insomnia, while two other campers teamed up to tell of the times they had to rise above the influences of their peers, separating their stories or speaking in unison accordingly. Each dynamic performance left the audience speechless. Everyone under that roof was united as we experienced these stories. T hough I attended the Great Books Summer Program for only a week for each of two summers, the experience left a lasting impression on me and my storytelling. I correspond every day with friends I made there, and the support I received at camp gave me the confidence to step forward and start sharing my stories again. Trusting my instincts, I can now create stories quickly and in the moment. Through this program, I have learned that in storytelling, nothing is wrong as long as it is genuine. Dahlia Pham is a junior at Palos Verdes Peninsula High school in california, where she is an editor of the literary publication and plays on the varsity tennis team. Dahlia enjoys reading, scootering, climbing trees, telling bad jokes, playing trading card games and old computer games, playing diﬀerent instruments, and listening to all sorts of music. she hopes to return to the great books summer Program this year. I remembered the times I had made people laugh with my impressions of Mr. Narwhal and Bird Man. I remembered the stories of my father’s childhood I had enjoyed so much when I was young. In that moment, my passion for storytelling was renewed. Metamorphosis When I returned to the Great Books program the next summer, it was one of the best weeks of my life. I took a creative writing learn more about the great books summer Program at www.greatbookssummer.com. www.cty.jhu.edu/imagine imagine 29 http://www.greatbookssummer.com http://www.cty.jhu.edu/imagine

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - November/December 2012

Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - November/december 2012
Contents
Big Picture
In My Own Words
Well of Dreams
Making History Personal
A World Full of Stories
The Month of Writing Dangerously
Japan Adventures
Storytelling 2.0
On the Frontline of Digital Journalism
Once Upon a Summer
Awakening the Storyteller
Selected Opportunities & Resources
On the Doorstep of Discovery
When You’re Ready to Do Research
Off the Shelf
Word Wise
Exploring Career Options
One Step Ahead
Planning Ahead for College
Students Review
Mark Your Calendar
Knossos Games

Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - November/December 2012