New post on Letters to Cameroon Farewell to the MFA by Viola It’s been a week since I found out I did not get accepted to the MFA program I applied to. It’s been a week of highs and lows, but it’s been better than I expected. Whenever I found myself feeling down about it, I would kick into gear and do something else, keep myself occupied. I applied to another master’s program, in another field. I applied for several jobs. I went online and watched tutorials or read articles dealing with the new field I want to get a master’s degree in. I keep myself busy reading and writing and researching. And it has worked. Worked well. It’s been a week, and I feel happy and free. I don’t feel bogged down by feelings of rejection. I don’t feel negative anymore about the program and their response to my application. I don’t even care. And on a deep level, I feel grateful, because it’s helped me face some truths–the truth that I am a writer already and don’t need any institutional approval or credential for that; the truth that I don’t necessarily want to be an adjunct English professor after I get my MFA; the truth that I’d like full-time, reliable employment, when I graduate from another master’s program; the truth that I love my home and family in Sacramento, and I don’t want to move away. So there you have it. My farewell to the MFA.