Twas days before the first Early Admissions deadline Students are furiously typing, their parents fretting Online applications half completed Teenagers rationalizing the form “won’t take that long to complete” Yet, their parents hover, murmuring about “crashed servers”, Admonishing not to submit at the “last minute”, literally 11:59 pm On the deadline day Still visions of acceptance letters danced in their heads Rudely burst by fears about being “rejected” Deep in sleepy neighborhoods, there arose such a clatter As the blue backlight of smart phones everywhere flash A’twitter with frantic “chancing” on any convenient Gen Z social media thread Desperate to quell their insecurities Then, just as suddenly, the insecurity passes, and in one compulsive click Teens return to Google docs unfurling autobiographical stories From deep within their consciousness Like moonlight illuminating a “new-fallen snow” Teen renewed in their commitment to their college quest No matter what And, by morning, “what to the wondering eyes” of parents everywhere “did appear” But, a teenager, triumphant with a complete college essay draft Bleary-eyed, yet determined to embrace another day of the AP rat race Plus hours of after-school commitments AFK Then, once again return to screens, when purple darkness descends Summoning each of their Reach, Target, and Backups by name Now, UC Berkeley, Now, Princeton, Now, Villanova, Now NYU and Georgetown On, UCLA, On Harvard, On MIT and Purdue To the extent of the character count! To the deadline! Now, write! Write! Write! Once again, fingers frenzied as their minds fly ahead of their words per minute speed Parents, sigh, relieved on the other side of a closed door Comforted that once again their teens are back in the race for college They retire to Facebook, posting hopeful memes that an application will be done…soon “And then, in a twinkling” (well, really seven days later), parents hear the magic words, “Mom, I need your credit card!” As she shuffles in from the other room, hopeful, eager, Parent and teen stare at the screen Everyone silent that seventeen years of expectation, anticipation, Hours spent sweating on fields, in gyms, on the pitch, Weekends sacrificed to parades of teens delivering oratories in competition Numerous all-night cram sessions for countless AP courses Culminate in a single click Some utter prayers, making offerings, acknowledging that after the clicking, “Submit” Some power other than themselves will be at play A leap of faith That teen and parent have done all they could Payment made Application submitted The gravitas of the moment passes Parents ask, “When is the next one due?” No rest for the weary Teens once again sit with fingers poised over the keys With a dismissive wave, signaling their parents’ departure But as the door, softly clicks, Parents exclaim “Happy first college application submitted!” Hat tip to Clement Clarke Moore, “A Visit From St. Nicholas”
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