Reflection on Self

I once applied to a writing program, waited months for a response and then got a mass email entitled "Rejection Letter" in my inbox one day. A couple of days later, the email was recalled and the institution in question sent out acceptance letters to those of us who were mistakenly emailed "Rejection Letter" and slightly more subtly-worded rejections to everyone else. This made me think about how your self-perception can change on a dime. For a couple of days, my identity was "Rejection Letter." I walked around like a reject, an abject failure. I made jokes about it. Then, I wasn't a reject anymore. I was one of the few non-rejects. I'd like to tell you that this transition was a completely happy one, but it wasn't. The acceptance was a relief. The recognition of how I see myself, in part as a result of how others see me, was not.