My
personal ‘American dream’
My personal ‘American
dream’ isn’t
just about a certain person from a film, a book, a TV-series or from politics
(although, it would be fairly interesting to talk to Barack Obama or someone
like him). It is also not about some landscapes, like the fascinating view of
the Rocky Mountains. It is not even about my expectations concerning a typical
American high school that tiptoed into my mind by watching thousands of
TV-series, but it consists of all these things combined. All of
these things together form a unique world in my head –
just my America.
When I think about the USA, there
automatically comes an image to my mind; you could call this phenomenon ’my
mental movie projector’.
First, this image shows some landscapes, like the Mississippi with its unique
steamships, a boy called Tom Sawyer is running next to this river. And next,
there is Route 66, with me dashing around in a truck, and then, Death Valley,
the maybe hottest area in the USA. After this, the image turns into a yellow,
chock-full school bus that drives you to school.
For you to understand, what I am going to
tell you next, I may have to explain that I like to watch films and series’
about American high schools; that is why I can’t
help having certain ideas about what high school is like. For example, after
reaching school, you first meet your ‘clique’
(assuming you have one): There are the nerds from the math- and chess-club, the
pretty cheerleaders, who seem a little stuck-up, always concerned about their
looks, and talking about the hot and famous football players all the time,
there is the goon and some other guys, who faithfully follow their boss around.
Then there are the unusual people, who haven’t
got any friends besides themselves and last but not least, the quiet normal
ones. When first lesson starts, after everyone is in their seats, the teacher
appears. Much like the pupils, every teacher has his own, special personality.
For example, there are the strict ones, the curious ones, the ‘matey’
ones, and so on. Often the pupils have to take a test. Everybody is frightened
about this and most are thinking up a strategy to cheat, which the teacher
nearly always finds out about and so the test is marked a big, fat ‘F’;
usually you can also see some ‘D-s’.
If there’s a ‘B+’
for someone, this one will probably be pretty disappointed, because he expected
to receive an ‘A’.
At the end of one’s
school education all are having a huge celebration, wearing their graduation
hats and the star pupil is giving his ‘farewell
speech’. Finally, everyone is
throwing their hats into the air at the same time.
All of this may sound
curious and very stereotypical to you, but imagine living with these images
your entire life. I feel that I need to see for myself; I feel that only seeing
and experiencing will help me truly understand, whether these clichés are true
or not.
And if I keep rummage
around in my clutter of thoughts, I finally see the single States - like
Florida with his scores of Theme parks of and even of Harry Potter. Washington
where it rains often , Tennessee with this cowboy-country stuff etc. and not
only the states but also the cities and towns which have formed the life in
America.
For example there’s
New York, the ‘big apple’
which never falls into sleep, background of a thousands of films, and of the
New York Fashion week. Besides there’s
Las Vegas, where you can challenge your luck in a hundred of casinos. San
Francisco with the Golden Gate Bridge (I’m
still wondering why it isn’t
call ‘Red gate bridge’
I mean, its red.) comes into my mind and in every case I have once to visit
Los Angeles , where all the famous and rich people live. Of course the small
villages are interesting for me, too. They’ve
got a history, for example Calico, a ghost town in near of LA.
An other important image of my America
shows all celebrities who can call the USA as their home.
Actors like Zack Braff (who gave me by the
way a really funny view of the American hospitals) , Tom Hanks in one of the
best films ever ’Forrest Gump’
and Jennifer Lawrence & Josh Hutcherson (who’ll
both appear on the big screen soon in the film version of my absolutely
favorite book ’’the Hunger Games’’)
are just four of a thousand. Moreover I connect the USA with different,
fascinating Sports.
Images of Surfer and Jet-Skis, La Crosse-,
Football-, Ice hockey-, and Baseball players are flying through my mind. A lot
of these things I would enjoy doing them myself.
You can infer from all my speculations and
imaginations I’ve from the media,
that I’ve never been on this -
for me still unknown, but not that foreign - continent.
All
the things I said are fusing on some way together and form my personality
America. Not more, not less. It’s a big dream of mine to discover
how this world is in reality.