Setting: Dominican Republic, maybe with a relative, maybe with a friend over some mojitos on a veranda overseeing your sugar cane plantation. (Note: These types of conversations with Mr. Dominican Somebody are almost always in Spanish. This has everything to do with how awkward they are.) Dominican Somebody: Jordi! Jordi: Dominican Somebody! DS: Hi! I haven’t seen you in foreeeever! Jordi: I know! Right back at ya! So, how are those [insert practical career track here] classes going? DS: WHATever, let’s talk about YOU! How’s it going at Yale? What’s your GPA? Do you have a girlfriend yet? Is it cold over there right now? I bet it’s super cold right now. When do you go back? Jordi: Oh, um, you know, actually, I’ve been in the DR since August. I’m taking a gap year. DS: Wait, what? Jordi: You know, like a sabbatical of sorts? [Silence.] DS: Oh NO, did they kick you out of Yale? Jordi: What?! No! It’s something I’ve wanted to do since before college and circumstances finally allowed me to take the plunge. DS: I don’t get it. WHY would you leave Yale to come back home? Jordi: Well, I had originally planned to travel or do some research but then this great opportunity came up here to work for this nonprofit that helps childr- DS: How much do you get paid? Jordi: Oh. I mean, nothing. [Wordlessness! Eyes widen, an imaginary tumbleweed rolls by.] DS: You are working for free?! I can’t believe oh my god what WHY OH WHY DID YOU LEAVE YALE? Jordi: It’s just that I wanted to take time off from academics for a while, and it came to a point where my goals became blurred. So I actually ended up needing the time to, you know, reset, reprioritize, refocus. DS: You could’ve done that while still staying in school. Jordi: Maybe, but actually I don’t think so. Everyone around me had some kind of inkling about what they wanted to study, some even knew what they wanted the rest of their lives to look like. I needed to remove myself from that context to really think about my next step. DS: So this new job of yours, is that what you want to do now? Jordi: Erm, not really. I just wanted to do something different for a year and right now my work makes me feel purposeful, and that feeling helps me pay more attention to what I actually want from life. DS: That’s some gringo bullshit. [A stare-off ensues.] Jordi: Anyway. I’m even starting to take a couple of college courses here, on subjects that are not normally offered at Yale, you know, just to check them out. DS: Sooooooooooooo, you’re not going back to Yale! Jordi: Um, yes. I. Am. [Forced silence, the staring contest kinda continues. Jordi gets the urge to slap something.] DS: Oh … right … And what do the ’rents have to say about this … thing you’re doing now? [Eye contact breaks!] Jordi: Let’s like, um, I don’t even what even, I mean, no. DS: [Coughs.] Jordi: Yup. DS: But don’t you miss it? Jordi: Every single day. That doesn’t mean I regret my decision. I don’t miss the stress of academia, I don’t miss the very American practice of social climbing, I don’t miss the weather, la-dee-da. DS: Meh, I wouldn’t wanna leave the people I already met. Jordi: I don’t think it’s that big of a deal. I keep in touch. My real friends will remain my friends. New Haven will still be there when I return. DS: New what? Jordi: New Haven, where Yale is … In Connecticut … It’s between NYC and Boston. DS: Oh! Yeah, my mom’s second cousin lives around there. Jordi: Huh. Cool. [Silence, revisited.] DS: Um, so like, since you’re here now for a while, I was wondering if you could lend me a hand with an essay I have due next week? C’mon, if you help me out, you’ll get it done in no time … [Silence, revisited.]
Tête-à-tête on the taboo issue of gap years
