The Waiting Game
Anyone who is waiting for an acceptance letter knows the difference between a thin and
thick envelope. In fifth grade at John B. Dey Elementary School, I sent my applications to two
middle school programs that I was interested in. They were applications to attend middle schools
with gifted students programs. I was slated to go to Great Neck Middle School, but I wanted to
have a challenge. One was the Middle Years Program at Plaza Middle School and another was
Kemps Landing Magnet School. My third option was Great Neck Middle School. I had my heart
set on going to the MYP program at Plaza Middle School. That was where I envisioned myself
for the next three years. I could not see myself being anywhere else for middle school. I had
numerous friends with the same aspirations of going there. Kemps Landing Magnet School was
not the school I wanted to attend. I didn’t know anyone that wanted to attend, but I still sent an
application so I still had options. The third and final option was Great Neck Middle School
where the majority of my friends were planning to go. I did not want to go there because I
wanted to take on a greater challenge. From what I had heard, Kemps Landing and the MYP
program were much stronger academically. After sending in my applications, all I could do was
wait. Waiting two months to hear back from those schools was like slamming ones finger in a
door.
March 18, 2009 arrived before I knew it. My Mom, Dad, brother, sister, aunt, and three
cousins and I headed to O’Sulliavans for dinner. When we walked in the waiter led us to where
we would be sitting. The restaurant was very spacious and cozy. It had decorations everywhere
and had a stylish feel. The table we all sat at was round and gigantic. We all sat down at the table
next to a window overlooking a garden. The table had a thick black table cloth that hung over the
edges. I was really excited when I saw everybody and my Dad put his arm around me and roared,
“This dinner is for you buddy.”
I sat down in-between my cousins and my Mom handed me the two envelopes. I couldn’t
believe two months had gone by so fast. The first observation I noticed was that one envelope
was thin and the other was thick. My hand hastily dropped the thin one and grabbed the thick
envelope. I was hoping that the thick envelope was from MYP. As my eyes glanced to the upper
left hand corner, I realized it was not. I was accepted into Kemps and was crushed to see that I
was denied from MYP. My family was stunned and their hearts sank with mine. My parents kept
smiling and reassuring me that everything would work out great. I on the other hand, wasn’t
feeling so confident.
After much thought, I agreed not to appeal the MYP denial and I enrolled in Kemps. I
wasn’t really sure that Kemps was going to be the place for me, but I decided that since they
believed in my abilities, that I was going to go there and do my best. And boy did I shine! I
received all A’s for my final grades each year. I learned that even though MYP didn’t have space
for me, that I would have been an asset to them. Kemps taught me to write, study, manage my
time and how to believe in myself. It was a great choice for me.