b'ALUMNISTORYSTRONGFOUNDATIONS By: Dr. Victoria Smith Shropshire 91The cornerstones of my intellect, wit, andWith my Senior Project (barely) completed,I survived the Dallas Central Expressway. strength were chiseled into my identity whilegraduation came and went. I worked myBecause one experience of riding in a van I was a Bengal.summer job through treatments. I went awaydriven by Sherry Dove to a swim meet taught As a human being in the GDS community,to college in the fall. (I got accepted to all sixme to value my life and take Drivers Ed I was unexceptional in almost everyschools.)seriously. way: academically, socially, artistically,And there I was. Me - the Crown PrincessI knew how to conduct research and study philanthropically. (Its no wonder that I wasof Underachieving - NOT struggling toindependently. Because Mr. Bowman taught advised I would not be accepted to any of thelive on my own, 1100 miles away fromme that the world is full of wonder and six schools to which I had applied for collegehome. I quickly discovered the value of mymystery if we look closely and carefully, and admission.) I was outstanding at nothing; infoundations.Mr. Moore and Dr. Gutsell instilled in me truth, I made not one significant contributionI found that the least stressful part of mya love for words so I could attempt to share to the school I attended for seven years.life was academics. I found that even withthose wonders and mysteries. But considering the secrets I kept, I wasmy new medical regimens and schedule, IHaving these solid academic foundations gave actually quite proud of that. Underachievers,could manage my coursework. I rediscoveredme the mental and emotional space to deal I have found, have an uncanny ability tomy love for theatre and directed largewith the other stressful things going on in my survive.scale productions on campus, largely duelife - things over which I had little control to a support system who understood themost days. It also gave me the freedom to GDS is well-known to be a small, tighttreatment traumas I was enduring.develop new skills that I needed to survive. community, where its hard to keep a secret.I learned to love country music. Because if Being a student in an environment whereDolly was good enough for Bob Satterfield,And survive I did. Things got much worse everyone knows everyone elses business,she was damn sure good enough for me.before they got better; secrets have a way of through some sort of social osmosis (walkingcoming to light, social osmosis or no. I have the halls was enough to keep you informedI spent hours with my first love, art, becausegaps in my memory from being burned, of things you wouldnt have even asked toI knew how to manage my time. BecausePTSD from being poisoned, and Frankenstein know), was often thoroughly exhausting fortranslating French literature with Dr.scars from being cut; I was the walking trinity me. As I approach the 30-year anniversary ofDavison had taught me patience and how toof cancer treatments before I was 25. But I am leaving those halls, (my truth long-since outdedicate the time truly needed to engage withstill here. of the closet), I know that my ability to adapta text. I identified tasks that needed more and survive was made possible largely fromeffort and time (close reading) and whichAnd here, there must be a solemn nod to my having strong foundations.ones needed less because they came moreexperiences as a Bengal. In the last week of school before Senioreasily (most writing), and which ones I couldI have built and rebuilt my life a dozen times Projects began, I was diagnosed with cancer.ignore (algebra).over, because you can do that, you know, Dr. Victoria Shropshire (DocShrop) is when you have strong foundations. full-time writer and editor, part-time Though known as extroverted, I had a professor, and lifetime derelict debutante. repertoire of masks. I was determined not to Her scholarly expertise focuses on the become defined by a diagnosis when I had impact of inherited narratives on identity (re)construction, especially the use of dark worked hard for years to avoid other stigmas. humor to confront the places in which I just wanted to get out alive. Support came queer and illness narratives intersect. She in surprising ways throughout my Senior is currently negotiating the release of Project; I was enveloped in North Carolina her debut book Living is a Drag, a CNF memoir in which a derelict debutante Shakespeare Festival and CTG projects where struggling with a chronic illness is rescued actors and staff members helped me manage by Dobermans and drag queens. Her own my workload so I could juggle the onslaught drag persona, Miss Hap, has not been seen for decades, but might resurge in order to of clinical consultations and appointments boost book sales. A survivor with a dark that descended on me. Whirlwind would be sense of humor and a truck-stop vernacular, an adequate adjective to use, and in truth, Victorias pet peeves are seahorse without the Senior Project, my life might birdbaths, cypress clocks, and velvet paintings of Elvis. www.derelictdeb.com have disintegrated. www.imyourgirl.org Tweet @VictoriaShrop 70 | Summer 2020 Insta @vshrop'