I remember when I was first introduced to Kurt Vonnegut, at a surprisingly late age. It was 2002, and although I had heard of Vonnegut before, I certainly was not familiar with his works.
But a then coworker of mine who, like me, was also into reading recommended him to me, and lent me his copy of Slaughterhouse-5.
From that point on, I was hooked. Keep in mind, of course, that this was just months after the events of September 11th. And he expressed a refreshing point of view that seemed to go missing in those months: a desire for peace.
Before long, I became obsessed with Vonnegut. Within a couple of years, I had read every book from him, and had managed even to see him in person. That was one of two times overall that I managed to attend events that he was a part of.
The thing with Vonnegut is that he has a very distinctive, and admirable, approach to writing. He is deceptively simple, not trying to wow you by showing off his college education, and using sophisticated, ten dollar words that you will be ashamed not to know, and secretly look up in the dictionary (or nowadays, right on an internet search engine - probably Google).
Yes, it's fair to say that Vonnegut has a certain style unique to him. No one writes quite the way that he did. He was able to juggle a lot of tough issues of the day, and do so with what appeared to be a very simple language and direct thoughts, although there were deeper layers behind his thinking, and what he was trying to say.
About a few things, though, Vonnegut never wavered or changed his message. One of those things that he always insisted on was that people should create something artistic. Whether it was sculpting or painting, music, poetry or writing, Vonnegut always urged people to go ahead and create something.
He questioned how much you can really know about yourself if you haven't created? If you only rely on others to create things for you?
It was Vonnegut's words that got me to finally not just try writing - which I had tried before and, frankly, failed miserably at - but to stick with it, even if I was not all that god at first. In time, with practice, I noticed that I was getting better.
To that end, he wrote this letter to a high school in New York, urging kids to create something of their own - not for school credit or to try and make big money, but rather to learn something about themselves.
Here is the text of that letter, and the links below, where you can find out more about it (as well as see images of the letter, which feature his unique autograph/self-portrait:
Dear Xavier High School, and Ms. Lockwood, and Messrs Perin, McFeely, Batten, Maurer and Congiusta:
I thank you for your friendly letters. You sure know how to cheer up a really old geezer (84) in his sunset years. I don't make public appearances any more because I now resemble nothing so much as an iguana.
What I had to say to you, moreover, would not take long, to wit: Practice any art, music, singing, dancing, acting, drawing, painting, sculpting, poetry, fiction, essays, reportage, no matter how well or badly, not to get money and fame, but to experience becoming, to find out what's inside you, to make your soul grow.
Seriously! I mean starting right now, do art and do it for the rest of your lives. Draw a funny or nice picture of Ms. Lockwood, and give it to her. Dance home after school, and sing in the shower and on and on. Make a face in your mashed potatoes. Pretend you're Count Dracula.
Here's an assignment for tonight, and I hope Ms. Lockwood will flunk you if you don't do it: Write a six line poem, about anything, but rhymed. No fair tennis without a net. Make it as good as you possibly can. But don't tell anybody what you're doing. Don't show it or recite it to anybody, not even your girlfriend or parents or whatever, or Ms. Lockwood. OK?
Tear it up into teeny-weeny pieces, and discard them into widely separated trash recepticals. You will find that you have already been gloriously rewarded for your poem. You have experienced becoming, learned a lot more about what's inside you, and you have made your soul grow
God bless you all!
Kurt Vonnegut
Kurt Vonnegut Once Sent This Amazing Letter To A High School by Rebecca Klein of The Huffington Post, March 14, 2014:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/14/kurt-vonnegut-xavier-letter_n_4964532.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000063
"Everyone should follow Kurt Vonnegut’s beautiful and practical advice to high-schoolers" by Abraham of twentytwowords.com, March 14, 2014 - This had the clearest image of the actual letter that Vonnegut sent:
http://twentytwowords.com/everyone-should-follow-kurt-vonneguts-beautiful-and-practical-advice-to-high-schoolers/
"Do art and do it for the rest of your lives": Kurt Vonnegut's letter to high schoolers" by Lindsay Van Thoen of Freelancersunion.org.blog, March 14, 2014:
https://www.freelancersunion.org/blog/2014/03/14/do-art-and-do-it-rest-your-lives-kurt-vonneguts-letter-high-schoolers/
Published by Letters of Note, March 30, 2012:
http://www.lettersofnote.com/2012/03/i-am-very-real.html
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