SHORTLISTED:)

                      Shortlisted :)

I had never come across this word,

and the day I did,

it arrived carrying the weight of rejection.

Shortlisted —

a word that meant

someone else was chosen,

and I was not.

Sometimes,

not knowing certain words

is a blessing for the mind,

a little shelter for the heart.

But back in 2023,

I heard it for the first time:

“You’re shortlisted.”

Yet the ache behind it

belonged to me,

not the one selected.

It felt like the world whispered,

“Not you. You may go.”

Even now,

the echo stays—

those soft, sharp syllables

reminding me

of rejection,

one more time.

I know I’m not perfect

in the way they expect,

but no one walking this earth

is perfect either.

Still, I hold on to hope—

that someday this word

will turn toward me

with kindness:

“You’re shortlisted…

for the post you dream of.”