There was bright light in my face. The fast moving ambulance was speeding smoothly through the streets of Los Angeles. I cried with pain as the paramedic blew up a glove into a balloon to try to cheer me up. That is the very little memory I have of my first asthma attack at age four.
My asthma might not be as intense as other cases, but it did have a great effect on my childhood. While everyone was playing soccer at my elementary school, I was at the sideline waiting to take one's position. When it was my turn to play, I was known to be of little or no use to the team. It was the same with many other sports and activities.
My neighborhood friends were a bit different. Because there was only five of us, all we could play was hide-and-seek. Very little agility and movement was needed, just a creative mind to find a good place to escape view. As a result, I loved that time of the day. They were nothing like the "friends" at school where peers felt they needed to be the funny or contemptable in order to be loved by the mass of students. It was at home where I found true friendship. I had a magical relationship with them: Kimberly, Carolina, Adrian, and Alex.
I still had those seven hours of school that I had to get through everyday. Since I wasn't doing well with athletics, I tried to find something I might be able to apply myself to. That's when I discovered Mr. Jacobs. He was the school counselor. There, in his office, lied a wooden board with beautiful, colorful, glass chess pieces arranged in their starting position.
He got my attention by promising me a giftcard if I was ever able to beat him. It took a week for me to learn each piece's distinct movement, and months to learn powerful strategies. The moment I'd been waiting for came about a year later when I was able to finaly win a battle against the well-experienced Mr. Jacobs. I recall walking out of the room after the win and jumping through the hall filled with pride, and making sure everyone knew what milestone I had just accomplished. Perhaps that win was just luck, but it was a few weeks later that he realized he had just turned his student into a legitimate competitor.
Throughout the rest of elementary and middle school, I made sure I had a daily game of chess with either classmates or teachers. Everyone began to see me as a challenge.
I finally had my asthma under control once high school started. Despite my chess success, the competitor inside me wanted to re-try my youth. I decided I would attend football try-outs. I was ecstatic to get on the field, but once again something else came in my way of my ambition.
I once again woke up with the bright light in my face. I could hear my mother crying with fear and I was full of confusion. The paramedic began to interrogate me.
"Are you taking any drugs?"
"How many fingers am I holding up?"
"Are you allergic to any medication?"
A seizure. I was diagnosed with epilepsy. Epilepsy put a fast end not only to my promising football aspirations, but also to any kind of contact sport.
With football gone, I was once again left with chess. That as until I was forced to summer school. With many options in classes, there was one that caught my eye: Bill Cosby Filmmaking Workshop.
I always loved cinema, Weather it was moves(on the big screen or at home) or just TV, but I never thought about pursuing a career in cinematography.
I was frustrated with my first movie, it lacked many of the qualities that came with the good movies I watched at the theater. It was David Maquilling, a professor at USC's School of Cinematic Arts, that taught and inspired me to continue to work my hardest to make the movie I imagined in my head.
One of David's first rule in film making was having fun. Once I had a hand on filmmaking, the fun began to flow. I then discovered that making them was just as boisterous as watching them and it was at that moment that I chose to major in cinematography. I want a chance to let my imagination out and let others have a chance to make them happy with my vision.
My asthma might not be as intense as other cases, but it did have a great effect on my childhood. While everyone was playing soccer at my elementary school, I was at the sideline waiting to take one's position. When it was my turn to play, I was known to be of little or no use to the team. It was the same with many other sports and activities.
My neighborhood friends were a bit different. Because there was only five of us, all we could play was hide-and-seek. Very little agility and movement was needed, just a creative mind to find a good place to escape view. As a result, I loved that time of the day. They were nothing like the "friends" at school where peers felt they needed to be the funny or contemptable in order to be loved by the mass of students. It was at home where I found true friendship. I had a magical relationship with them: Kimberly, Carolina, Adrian, and Alex.
I still had those seven hours of school that I had to get through everyday. Since I wasn't doing well with athletics, I tried to find something I might be able to apply myself to. That's when I discovered Mr. Jacobs. He was the school counselor. There, in his office, lied a wooden board with beautiful, colorful, glass chess pieces arranged in their starting position.
He got my attention by promising me a giftcard if I was ever able to beat him. It took a week for me to learn each piece's distinct movement, and months to learn powerful strategies. The moment I'd been waiting for came about a year later when I was able to finaly win a battle against the well-experienced Mr. Jacobs. I recall walking out of the room after the win and jumping through the hall filled with pride, and making sure everyone knew what milestone I had just accomplished. Perhaps that win was just luck, but it was a few weeks later that he realized he had just turned his student into a legitimate competitor.
Throughout the rest of elementary and middle school, I made sure I had a daily game of chess with either classmates or teachers. Everyone began to see me as a challenge.
I finally had my asthma under control once high school started. Despite my chess success, the competitor inside me wanted to re-try my youth. I decided I would attend football try-outs. I was ecstatic to get on the field, but once again something else came in my way of my ambition.
I once again woke up with the bright light in my face. I could hear my mother crying with fear and I was full of confusion. The paramedic began to interrogate me.
"Are you taking any drugs?"
"How many fingers am I holding up?"
"Are you allergic to any medication?"
A seizure. I was diagnosed with epilepsy. Epilepsy put a fast end not only to my promising football aspirations, but also to any kind of contact sport.
With football gone, I was once again left with chess. That as until I was forced to summer school. With many options in classes, there was one that caught my eye: Bill Cosby Filmmaking Workshop.
I always loved cinema, Weather it was moves(on the big screen or at home) or just TV, but I never thought about pursuing a career in cinematography.
I was frustrated with my first movie, it lacked many of the qualities that came with the good movies I watched at the theater. It was David Maquilling, a professor at USC's School of Cinematic Arts, that taught and inspired me to continue to work my hardest to make the movie I imagined in my head.
One of David's first rule in film making was having fun. Once I had a hand on filmmaking, the fun began to flow. I then discovered that making them was just as boisterous as watching them and it was at that moment that I chose to major in cinematography. I want a chance to let my imagination out and let others have a chance to make them happy with my vision.