My son, a sophomore attending a STEM high school, texted me from class this morning and told me that he received his test scores for the PSAT (for those not in the states, this is our national aptitude test for high school students and a measure of ones chances for college acceptance). He scored an 1160 and he made it to the 95th percentile in Math. That's actually pretty good and I don't think he even expected to score that well. He's exactly on track. This was his first time taking it and a good measure of where he's at and what he'll need to work on to be better prepared when he takes it again next year. He aims to score among the coveted 99th% percentile for his grade level.
Now, this may not seem like much of a big deal to you and you may wonder why I'm writing about it, but let me explain, because this is monumental to me and to him.
Ever since Kayah was 3 years old, I would whisper in his ear, "You're going to be a great engineer one day."
As a parent, we always want the best for our kids and because the odds were stacked against us, father not being in the picture, me single never having finished college myself, I knew the path ahead of us would not be easy. However, I knew even then that holding a clear vision of what I wanted for him and myself, was important. So, I instilled greatness in him, no matter what adversity I faced in my personal life, our financial life, I shielded him, protected him, provided the best for him, regardless of the cost to me.
The first 10 years of his life, we lived in Miami. A place filled with as much hardships as there were possibilities. He received a great early education. He tested into the gifted program and his teachers and school principal were impressed to see that he was equally gifted in both reading and in math at the age of 6.
However, I already knew that his future would be bright.
Fast forward to today, past countless untold stories of struggles most couldn't imagine going through, as well as triumphs, blessings, miracles...moving and moving and moving again, we are here now and he is nearly all grown up at the age of16.
Here we are now living in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, Kayah is attending a great school, Steem is doing fantastic which has changed all our lives, I have a loving partner and a supportive family and tribe around me!
This morning my son and I were discussing Berkeley and you know what? I am no longer worried about how it will be paid for or if he'll get accepted, because everything is on track. It's all happening the way it's supposed to and I could not be more grateful and at the same time completely humbled by it all.
So, whatever your dreams may be, whatever you wish for, for yourself and for your loved ones, hold that vision. Picture it in your mind and feel it in your heart. Every single day set your intentions and know that all things are unfolding perfectly, that you deserve greatness and that it's all very real, because it truly is and you really do!