"Okay, let me have the next application. I hope this one is different from the others. All these applicants have the same point of view about society, whether it's women's liberation, violence, or politics. Maybe that is what they think we want them to write."

Mr. Duncan Murdoch takes the application. He browses through the vital information, which is similar to the others. He sighs as he realizes that what he is looking for may not exist. He turns the page to the extracurricular activities. Rather than the average track, football, and tennis, Megan had been involved in Odyssey of the Mind, a creative problem-solving group for more than seven years. She had gone to the world finals three times and won numerous creativity awards for her ideas and responses to the problems.. Creativity and variety are what I was looking for.

As he continues, he realizes that Megan wants to go to this school because of its literature department. Wanting to major in Journalism, Megan lists her accomplishments in writing. She is on the school newspaper and was published in The 21st Century newspaper. Mr. Murdoch flips to the teacher's recommendations, smiles, and looks at the essay. He skims the paragraphs. Seeing his name mentioned catches his attention.

As he starts to read, Mr. Murdoch realizes that Megan Bardsley's argument with society is that everything and everyone are so predictable. It is similar to Miss America wanting to have "World Peace" and to help starving children. Megan wanted to write this essay in a style that would stand out and describe her alternatives best. Her style takes the artful path, either amazing or confusing the reader. Mr. Murdoch realizes that she was writing essay from his point of view. The concept was different from the norm. Megan gave the essay an entirely new perspective.

Megan Bardsley realizes that she cannot change the entire world. Mr. Murdoch considers the people whose lives Megan will change in the future. They could be people like her husband or her children or even her business partners. Mr. Murdoch thinks that Megan will make a great impact the University of Southern California. He has a feeling that she will not be just another face in the crowd. Mr. Murdoch figures that since Megan would like to become a writer, she will begin to transform the world from being redundant to a world where people become distinct individuals. However, before she even starts this transformation, Megan must finish her education.

Mr. Murdoch considers this application. He smiles to himself at the approach and the chance Megan has taken writing the essay in this format. He reaches over to his left and grabs the "Accepted" stamp from its ink pad. Mr. Murdoch raises the stamp above the paper and releases it. -