No You're Not; Yes I Am

Pit Crew #3 is reading Of Mice and Men for his section of his English class. He'll get credit for having read it, but there's no accountability for having done so. It's 'on his honor.' Umm ... okay ... Now, I trust my kiddo in many respects, but I am hardly expecting him to make many connections or dive particularly deep into the concepts of foreshadowing or symbolism without a little accountability. Enter: Mom & Son Book Club, at your service ...

This book is taking me back, though, because I'm pretty sure I read it in high school although I remember very little of it. What I remember of reading (as a whole, not just this book) was the number of times I was told I wasn't much of a reader by those who expected me to read as fast as others. Indeed, my reading speed was pretty slow if I had a prayer of comprehending anything. But, isn't it funny (not of the ha-ha variety) that I got the point was to actually comprehend what I read, and I adjusted what I needed -- including extra time to complete assignments -- all on my own, but the continual assessment of my ability was so often about how fast I read. For real, people can be so ignorant. I will not name names.

So, believe when I say I went ahead and adopted the idea that I wasn't much of a reader. I also come from the era where girls just 'weren't that good' at math, so I lived right on up to that expectation as well. Believe when I say that my grades looked a lot prettier than the pathways of pouting and trails of tears leading up to them. And, you've been privy to a story or two reflecting on the many times I was told I was not a runner because -- you guessed it -- I wasn't very fast.

*sigh*

The catch of it all, though, is that all of the 'you can't do it' messages were external. Every one of them. Frankly, I thought I was just fine as a reader until others told me otherwise. I was pretty good at math until I was reminded that it's okay struggling with a new concept because I was a girl (I guess boys never struggled with new concepts? Oh, my ...). And, my running served me just fine especially as I learned to cut angles and play smarter on the soccer field against those whom I accepted I could not beat in a foot race. It just wasn't fine for those who valued speed over endurance.

But, it's not about anyone else's opinion anymore. It hasn't been for a long time. That's why I keep going ... Quickly? No. Persistently? Yes.

And, tomorrow, I'm goinggoinggoing for the last 10-miler of the schedule! I'll check in after as we start off the weekend!!