My cellphone rang while I was working on my computer. I looked at the phone and saw it was my 17-year-old son, Tom. I quickly picked it up. "Mom, I got a 71 on the test. I did it." With those few words, I could feel my heart start to pound.
Living in New York State, students cannot graduate from high school unless they pass at least five exams: one in English, one in science, two in history and one in math. For most students, who work hard, attend class, and do their homework, it isn't that hard. But for Tom, who is dyslexic(诵读困难的), it is such a real challenge that some teachers have feared he would never be able to even attempt, let alone achieve.
We were honest with him about his trouble, letting him know that there was nothing to be ashamed of. Some people learn differently. If he was willing to work, we would help him find a way to do as much as he could in his academic career. All that was standing in his way was this math test. He had taken it three times and did better each time, but he continued to fail. He was starting to get a bit tired of me saying this was a marathon not a sprint(冲刺). My heart broke each time we failed.
"Mom, thanks. I love you. Thanks for believing I could do this. "
For that one brief moment I knew, really, really, knew that everything we did to help our son achieve what he wanted was worth it.
