A part of accepting Bennington's offer of admission was sending a deposit of $500. I actually don't tend to have extra amounts of money in the $500 range sitting around my starving artist and stay at home mom with a child in private school household. But a week after I accepted admission, I was supposed to have my paperwork in, with the $500 deposit.
Hmmm......
I immediately made phone calls. Did anyone have any work for me?
Mommy needed her locks done. She'd give me $25 each time and pay for eight in advance. $200. She also said she'd pay the difference between what I earned and what I needed.
Aunt Lillian wanted me to do her hair. She is working toward wearing it naturally. $50.
Daddy needed yard work. $200.
Total: $500: $450, plus $50 gap from Mommy.
I want to talk about the yard work.
I went to my father's in the late morning with my puppies. They ran around his yard while I helped him reseed. This entailed me digging up a huge patch of grass on an incline, clearing the patch of all grass and weeds. The patch was several yards wide, and several yards tall. The clearing took about 10 hours. I then bagged the yardage, put down fertilizer and seeds and covered the area with hay.
When I finished the job my hands, feet, legs, arms, and especially my back were all on fire. But I had earned my deposit money. I loved it the whole time I was working - breaking my back, callousing my hands, scratching my legs that burned with mosquito bites. I loved it, because it was me working for what I want...
...my place at Bennington, my place as a writer.
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