The Report Card

Probably the biggest thing my father taught me was the value of education. He did not have a chance to go to college when he was young as he was his mother’s sole support. I watched him earn his degree part time while working full time and supporting three kids. A man who grew up poor, he would always say “education is the one thing they cannot take away from you”.

I tried to instill the same sense in my daughters. They knew that school was their top priority and in order to have other privileges or play sports, the school work had to come first. And they have come through with flying colors, and grades.

The other day I was in the attic looking for a storage trunk Beanie wanted to borrow. And in that trunk I found a folder of all my report cards that my father always saved. I sat down, kind of teary thinking of my dad, and started a long walk down school memories.

For some reason I thought I was pretty smart in High School. Apparently not. I failed my French regents? A 79 in physics? Wow, my daughters would have been grounded with those grades. And of course I made the mistake of showing them the report cards and now I have lost some credibility with them. In fact, they are still making fun of me.

My absolute favorite was my kindergarten report card. It is a strange predictor of my life to come. I got an A (almost always) in things like ‘I listen attentively’ , ‘I follow directions’, and “I take turns and share”. Yep, still do.

I got a slow start (N - not yet) in “I am interested in number and reading activities" but quickly caught up. And I am still a slow reader and problem solver. But I get there.

The one thing I never got better at (P - part of the time) is ‘I rest quietly’. Being at rest is still a problem for me.

How sweet to unearth this wonderful snapshot of me years ago. And to realize how as much as things change, they still remain the same..