Dear Little Overachiever,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXAdSDeWFWQ
#TheOriginOfTheHurt
You thought if you brought home high grades,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbsPmwHWw3p
they would finally say, "We're proud of you."
You chased medals,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhFAda26bcz
starred papers,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFWA2xEbitk
top honors—44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaJjw5UMg78
as if love could be earned through certificates.
You memorized lessons not just to pass,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUXnkRTjyFR
but to matter.
You smiled on recognition days,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIfL910khJn
searching the crowd for faces that never fully lit up for you.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmRmAUxpcMm
Or worse, weren't even there.
When you failed—once or twice,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZNId7eN2H2
you weren't asked how you were coping,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj4g2BBN3zj
but why you didn't do better.
You learned that excellence was expected—44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6RZQHNQh4Z
not celebrated.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuwPSqPR575
That your worth depended on how useful, smart, or impressive you could be.
But no one noticed you were tired.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEMUZ5MLknv
That your back hurt not from your school bag—44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtEqbWFcCE4
but from trying to carry their expectations.
You weren't seeking applause.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4P5J3Qos6M
Just affection.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK1M7f9KcIO
Just someone to say,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRQb2brHmlK
"I see how hard you're trying."
But love didn't come as a reward.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdV8GsJXull
And your effort, while outstanding, was treated as default.
So, listen to me now:
Your worth is not a grade.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsel2SjOcJy
Your value is not measured by medals.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1H7DplV0kq
And your heart?44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ86Dzprqxkp
Deserved more than performance-based affection.
You were brilliant—44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8VkeolXLK
not just in school,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUnFqwrWrA3
but in how you kept trying44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnsZWzd37aA
despite the silence,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2H8qoWQSHy
despite the emotional drought.
You didn't fail them.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdPBPVptJRH
They failed to see you.
But I do.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6eTdghzx13
I see that little girl.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHlvlNT0isS
And I am so proud of her.
Not because she was perfect—44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡULmL3VEtjr
but because she was persistent, kind,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4rWfL3PHgb
and brave enough to keep hoping.
You are not a disappointment.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSmk7VSTqOD
Never were.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ97NnWNLqcb
Never will be.
Love,44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡECLHfMfFKs
The You who finally stopped asking for permission to feel enough
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwb90NslNDA
and then Add to home screen.