Life

How It Feels To Get Into Your First-Choice School

by Dale Neuringer

It's senior year of high school, and you've spent the better half of it giving zero fucks about your classes, waiting to hear from your first-choice school, and having vivid daydreams about your beautiful future. Will you be fashionable and popular? Obviously. Will there be a cappella montages play every time you strut across the campus green? You know it.

So how does it feel when the moment of pure joy finally arrives? Here's what you can expect, you genius you.

You Hold The Letter In Your Hands For A Second, And Debate Not Opening It

Just because it's a big envelope doesn't mean you're safe!

Then You Take A Moment To Tell Yourself That If You Don't Get In, It'll Be Totally Fine Anyway

If they don't want me, then they never deserved me anyway. Yeah. I definitely totally feel that way.

Until you finally Open It...

...And Read The Magic Words "We Are Pleased To Offer You A Place..."

Did that say....I have an offer? A real offer?

For A Solid Minute You're Too Overwhelmed To React

What is even happening. Emotions...what are?

Until You Realize — You Did It!

The agony is over!

You Are The Man/Woman/Intergalactic Space Lord, You GOT IN

You're a little convinced you might be the smartest person in the whole world.

So you Laugh Joyously To Yourself Like A Weirdo For A While

You don't even care that you look genuinely insane to all the neighbors who have no idea why you're laughing on the sidewalk.

And You Feel The Urge To Call And Tell Someone

"Mom...I have to tell you something really important. Are you sitting down?"

And their Reaction Will Never Be Enough, No Matter What It Is

It's not just great that I got in, it's LIFE CHANGINGLY WONDERFUL TERRIFIC, how are you not tapping into that emotion right now? You disappoint me.

So You Do A Bit More Happy Dancing By Yourself

You're Actually Not Sure You'll Ever Stop

Dancing has never felt this good. Potentially nothing has.

And your Head Fills With Montages Of All The Awesome Stuff You're Going To Do At College

Goodbye haters, hellooooo new life full of excellent hair days and pithy comments to very good looking fellow students. Ready for this.

You're So Overstimulated You Can't Tell If You Want To Run A Thousand Miles Or Take A Nap

So happy I might keel over and nap for three years. All this emotion is exhausting.

Until It Sinks In That You're Really Going To Be Leaving

Your whole life is going to change. No more full fridge, no more high school friends, no more rules....holy shit.

And you're Kind Of Sad And Overwhelmed For A Second

I'm scared. Wait. I NEVER WANT TO LEAVE.

But Then It Passes, And Once Again You're Like

Best.day.ever.

Congratulations, you're awesome.