8 hours and 26 minutes.
As this cycle ends, I feel lucky, not proud. My effort paid off, but so many equally deserving friends didn't get the same result. I started this journey in 8th grade, and along the way, I have gained so many new experiences. If I had been rejected, I'm not sure I'd be saying that so calmly today. But I've learned to try.
I know for a fact there were at least 30 people in Uzbekistan with stronger applications than mine. So why me? I don't have a good answer, except "Nasib" (destiny). The Cornell deadline passed on January 2nd. I didn't apply. Then, at midnight on January 20th, an email said: today is the last day. I opened my laptop at 12 AM, with cup of coffee, submitted at 8:26 AM, and ran to the math lesson. And honestly, that still feels unfair.
Now, as I see, other Ivys that I spent weeks on perfecting ended up with rejection, but those 8 hours and 26 minutes resulted in my only Ivy acceptance.
There's a saying I now believe: Never skip a day, because that day could be the lucky one.
or maybe, it was two years of republic-wide projects. Maybe the sleepless nights. Or the 4.5 kg I lost in the last 14 days of admission, sleeping just two hours a night, running hungry after this acceptance. Maybe it was the mornings I showed up to school with no energy, Maybe it was the weekends I gave up, the birthdays I missed, the friends I couldn't meet. Maybe it was the moment I almost gave up but didn't. Maybe it was all of it. Maybe it was none of it. I don't know. But finally, it paid off.
