SOMWaD: To The Kids Who DIDN'T Make Honor Roll (And Their Parents)

The first marking period report cards came out last month and now (finally?) the list of honor rollees (rollers?) has been released.  There in the local paper(s) and social media outlets is the long list of kids who made honor roll (all As & Bs) and high honor roll (All As).  You see the names of (seemingly) all your friends there in black and white.  Your name isn't there.  Despite already knowing that you weren't on that list, when you see it, it may hurt.  You may feel sad.  You may feel hurt.  You may be angry.  You may get depressed.  Or maybe you feel a combination of all of the above (and then some).  It's okay.

I mean it.  It's okay.  

You SHOULD want to be on the honor list.  You should want to get good grades.  But most importantly you SHOULD do your best.  And if truly doing your best means that you get Cs, that's okay.  I'll say it (write it) again...If you are doing your best and your best is C level (or even D level), it's okay.

That's not to say you shouldn't aspire to get on honor roll.  But grades (and hence the honor roll list) do not and should not define who you are.  You are not a letter or a number.  You are a flesh and blood person with a multitude of qualities and attributes...some of which are good and some which will not be so good.  Think about it this way, does anyone know (or care) what Mother Theresa's grades were?  (Or conversely, where Hitler ranked among his classmates?)

The honor roll does matter.  I'm not that naive.   But it DOES NOT define you.  Your actions; the person that you are at the core, are what truly matter in life.  Honor roll; that can be the icing on the cake.  But even cake without icing is pretty darned good.

If you (or your kid) did make honor roll (or high honor roll), congratulations!   To all, keep up the good work that you've been doing and continue to strive to do better.  To all (students, parents...and everybody), do your best in all that you can.  Be proud of who you are.  Be kind (and not just during the holidays).  


No matter where you fall on the grade scale, remember in the long run you're NOT going to be remembered for your grades, but for being the person you are. 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Not Guilty

Image
The last time I blogged (https://bfthsboringblog.blogspot.com/2023/06/where-do-i-go.html ), this song from "Hair" was going through my head.  Today the above tune, written by George Harrison in 1968, but not officially appearing until George's 1979 solo album "George Harrison" (wonder how he came up with that title) has been running around in my head.  "Not guilty For getting in your way While you're trying to steal the day. Not guilty And I'm not here for the rest, I'm not trying to steal your vest. I am not trying to be smart, I only want what I can get. I'm really sorry for your aging head. But like you heard me said: Not guilty." Doesn't really apply to me...or maybe it does. When I last wrote it was a question of where do I go?  The answer was with my boys on a 5 day/4 night vacation to the Poconos.  (You probably know where if you've read my blog over the years.)  And we had a good time all things considered.  (Read the pr
Read more

Please Don't Ask Me...

Image
 ...about the house.  (For clarity:  I am talking about the house that my parents lived in at the Jersey Shore.)  I realize that you mean well.  (Or at least most of you do...if you've read  https://bfthsboringblog.blogspot.com/2023/07/not-guilty.html  you know who I mean.) My mom died a year ago Sunday.  My dad died last Saturday.  I am NOT focused on the house right now.  I am working on organizing a memorial down at the shore later this month.  (Which is turning out to be a lot more complicated than I thought it would be and SHOULD be.)  I am thinking about the graveside service that is scheduled for tomorrow morning.  I planning for the people that might come back to our house afterwards.  (Have no idea how many; so I've ordered some food and have some beverages and think I have enough.  I probably have too much, but that's how I roll.)  I am fielding phone calls and messages from friends and relatives, which I appreciate (if you're reading this Amanda, Linda, Pat
Read more

Moving

Image
January is almost over.   As the first month of the year, it is a month of moves.   The most obvious is that we move forward into a new year.   We move forward into a fresh start.   I'm trying to do more moving.   While I'm not as where I was several years ago, I am doing more exercise (the ever-popular walk aerobics) in the morning.   I try to do at least 30 minutes and then move on to 20 (or more) minutes of pedaling (no stationary bike for me, just the pedals), which gives me a chance to do Wordle and Connections   (note I am getting better at Worldle but find Connections to be a challenge.   I'm old and I don't know some of the references!   UGH!)   I'm TRYING to move towards better health (and weight loss although that is becoming more and more difficult and frustrating).   While I've "failed" at dry January, I have cut back on my alcohol consumption.   (I also plan to give it up for Lent...you know that doesn't always go so well.)   The c
Read more