The Fine Print
The Fine Print
"Dear Gretchen (ctrl c, ctrl v)
Thank you for applying to [college].
After careful review of your application (after skimming your test scores and seeing none), we are unable to offer you admission for Fall 2026 at this time, however, we invite you to opt into our waitlist (your application wasn't good enough, but it wasn't the worst, so you're thrown into the middle category).
[College] receives more applications from highly qualified applicants than we can accommodate, but your application demonstrated great promise (you didn't provide numbers for us to crunch, so we don't actually know what was in your application) and, if space becomes available, we may be able to offer you admission from the waitlist (we don't want you to attend, but to soften the blow, we'll glance at your application again and let you know much too late and after you've committed to another school).
Please be aware that opting in to the waitlist does not guarantee you will receive an offer of admission (this is your rejection letter).
For those who opt in, we will release our final decision through your Applicant Portal by the end of summer (if you're really desperate, we'll throw you a bone right when you're settled on another decision. Have fun panicking). Visit the Frequently Asked Questions page on the Applicant Portal for more information (please don't ask questions, as you are not an admitted student).
Thank you again for your application and interest in [college] (we have already forgotten who you are. Good day)."
The Voice
April 2026
Sweetness that melts
There’s a quiet beauty in the things you know won’t last, moments already fading even while you’re inside them. Like a perfect cheeseburger and a good New York Knicks team on the TV, sitting beside ...
Crossing Familiar Waters (Narrative)
Editor's Note: This painting, Crossing Familiar Waters, is the March winner of The Tomorrow Project's monthly contests. Artist's Statement: This was a painting project I did for the No Kings event on ...
Momentary
To be young is to feel the grass growing beneath your feet And wander through the woods aimlessly To see the little, quiet things unnoticed by all else And say, I saw something beautiful today. And di...
March 20th, 2026
DN24. R6. The metal numbers are still there. Clinging faithfully to the wooden electric post, tacked down with more fervor, probably by someone tired of the defeated, dangling look of them, rather tha...
Lottery
For the last four months since I lost my job, my daughter Willow and I have been living in the abandoned parking lot where the old Merry-Go-Round store used to be. Basically, Willow and I have been li...
The cellphone between you and me
I don't understand why "ghosting" is so normalized. What happened to communication? "Communication is key to a successful relationship" — that's what every relationship advice website or video will te...
The Fine Print
"Dear Gretchen (ctrl c, ctrl v) Thank you for applying to [college]. After careful review of your application (after skimming your test scores and seeing none), we are unable to offer you admission fo...
To Fall Into a Book
Never have I ever Ridden a horse Fallen in love Flown on clouds Worn dresses of silk Met elves Bowed to kings Spoken to fairies Petted dragons Seen a glass castle Channeled magical powers But I would...
Riverside
In the early morning I wake. I dress silently and slip out of my sleeping bag. I slowly unzip the tent flap, trying to let my tent mates sleep. The morning air is cold and biting, and a deep fog encas...
There was an ice raid in the area
and it was the tensest last period class I've ever been in. Well, for me, at least, and maybe only for me - when the announcement came on to secure the school, no going outside, continue as normal, th...
Deep Thoughts
I am a thinker. I think about big problems in the world and how to fix them. Like climate change, evolution, the state of humanity as of now. I write stuff down, half-finished thoughts scribbled, or t...
Stars
A girl stood alone on the edge of the world, scared to fall, but somehow she could not leave Her heart pounding, Her chest screaming, But the world around her was quiet and dark and so she stood a...
An Ode to You
And yes, you deserve one: you who has stars in your eyes and infinity running through your veins; you, whose heart becomes so heavy with the sunrise that you will always pick up a pen and write the m...
15 shouldn't feel like this
My friends are all getting old Getting their permit License Their own car Getting boyfriends, girlfriends Getting jobs My friends are all getting old They don’t play anymore Not with toys Or their im...
Foreigner
I'm Kashmiri. I understand the language but don't speak it Which sometimes makes me feel like a fraud. But when I visit Kashmir There's this warm feeling inside my chest That blossoms slowly, like my ...