Interview with Brian Daniels, BOM Student from 2004

Posted by Molly on November 10, 2011

On November 9, the Barrel of Monkeys office received a call from a young man who had been in the Barrel of Monkeys program at Choir Academy in 2004.  He was looking for the story he’d written that was performed at his school.  We found it.  Here it is:

I Remember When I First Went to the Beach and Almost Drowned by Brian Daniels, Choir Academy
When I went to the beach I was watching people swim and I ran around the sand then I went into the water and almost drowned.  When I got out I was LOST.  Then I reconized my cousins head I ran and I ran.  The I stoped an played with two girls when the left I lost his head then I saw his head again I ran to head and I wasn’t lost no more.  The End.

Mr. Daniels was kind enough to grant us an interview on what he remembers about his story and BOM, and what he’s up to now.

MOLLY:
We’re so glad you contacted us! What prompted you to call?

BRIAN:
I was sitting at home thinking about some things and the Choir Academy came to mind.  The school is closed now so I thought to myself:  “This school is now a legend.”  I wanted to send my kids to a school like the Choir Academy, because it had an impact on who I am today.  I started thinking of the numerous activities we did at the school and one of the main things I remember was the phrase “Barrel of Monkeys”.

I remember Mr. Silverberg and you guys performing my story in front of my school.  I also remember Mr. Silverberg explaining how they were keeping the stories and performing the stories elsewhere.  So I got on the internet and googled you guys and found the website.  From what was on the website I found out you were keeping the stories.  After typing “the choir academy” in the search bar, I saw other classmates’ stories that were performed, but not mine, so I decided to call.

MOLLY:
We are so glad you did! We found an archived copy of your story in your handwriting.  The story you wrote that we performed is from Day 3 of the Barrel of Monkeys program, “True Story Day.” Your story is called:  “I Remember When I First Went to the Beach and Almost Drowned.” What do you remember about writing that story?

BRIAN:
Well, after reading it, I remember my grammar wasn’t too good.  (Laughs)  Now that I’ve read the story from so long ago, I can revise it for you guys.

For some reason, I can remember back to when I was a baby in diapers.
So one night my family decides to go to the beach.
I remember playing with my cousins and big sister who is only a year older, in the shallow part of the water.
But as a baby who was curious about everything, I wandered off.
I somehow managed to get back in the water, but this time instead of playing in the shallow part, I went further.
As a small baby those Lake Michigan waves were huge and overwhelming.
The waves were just rocking me back and forth and I kept falling under.
I was eventually washed ashore.
I stood up and looked around and saw no one in sight.
I started walking.  I don’t know to where, but I started walking and began to cry.
I looked up and saw something that looked like my cousin’s head.
I screamed his name and began running toward it.
But still as a baby curious of everything, I came across two girls who were a couple years older than me and started playing with them.  They eventually left and I didn’t follow.
So I looked around again for my cousin’s head and found it and ran toward it again…and I guess I was found.

MOLLY:
I guess you were.  I’m glad, too! What do you remember about the Barrel of Monkeys writing workshops?

BRIAN:
I don’t remember much about the Barrel of Monkeys workshop, but one thing I do remember was Mr. Silverberg told us to take a true story of something that happened in your life and change it up and put a twist on it.  So I wrote the story of how I almost drowned, and for some reason I didn’t want to put a twist on it.

MOLLY:
It’s a good story as is! Are you still writing?

BRIAN:
Writing is a part of my life now because I write poetry.  It’s almost like a stress reliever, but it’s more like something that frees my mind and explains some things that I can’t explain.

Brian Daniels was part of the Barrel of Monkeys program at Choir Academy in 2004.  He is now 18, has completed a semester at DeVry in Tinley Park focusing on computer and electronic technologies.  He is currently on a break from school and is on a job hunt.

Mr. Eric Silverberg is an Emeritus Member of Barrel of Monkeys, and was Brian’s classroom teacher at Choir Academy.  Lisa Barker, Jonathan Mastro and Adriohn Richardson were the Barrel of Monkeys teachers.