Last week, I was wondering whether, in my procrastination, I was exaggerating how difficult it is to write a good application essay. Now, having written drafts of both the essays BU requires, I don't think I was. It's hard to distill your whole life into 1000 words or less. I find myself wanting to say either everything or nothing. With an arbitrary goal set somewhere in the middle, I am tempted just to throw some words up there, hoping any words will do. Perhaps my writing isn't as bad as it seems to me in afterthought. It's certainly not the best thing I've ever done, though. I plan to revise it, but I'm not sure how yet. I am almost certain that mere stylistic changes will not be sufficient. The first essay - the personal one - has an assigned topic that's almost unspeakably vague. My essay, by contrast, is...