A Note on Self-Authorship: Resolving Pain for a Hopeful Today

A letter to my College Application Process. I hope it is okay that I write you today. It has been a while, 16 years to be exact, but sometimes a while is just how long things take before we are ready to address them. I blamed you for making me feel less-than, like I was not worthy of being someone’s first choice for a long time. It was easy for me to draw that conclusion after years of mediocre academic performances coupled with your initial decision to waitlist me. I explored Marcia Baxter Magolda’s (1999, 2009, 2013) research on the development of self-authorship in young adults. Her work identifies a framework for understanding the on-going process by which we make sense of the world around us. Self-authorship requires us to take a curious approach to life and continually reexamine our beliefs, identities, and social relations (Baxter Magolda, 2009). In doing so, we strengthen our critical thinking skills and define personal values that provide the guidance to navigate this complex changing world. A self-authored person lives their values in mind, body and spirit. If we learn through resolving our pain, as Baxter Magolda suggests, then I still have a few more lessons to learn from our relationship (2013). After much back and forth, I decided to reconnect through this letter, and all I am asking in return is that you read with care. Perhaps, you will come to value our relationship differently, as I have