106

I got to class this morning and my professor asked if I got his email. Well, I'd tried to get into my school email before I came to class and it wouldn't let me in. I was a bit nervous when he looked directly at me and asked that. Then he forgot our papers in his office and asked me to accompany him; ooh if I thought I was in trouble before I was really nervous now.

In the hall he said he really liked my article I'd written and he'd like to share it with the class. He gave me a 106%. He wanted to show the class what he was expecting from us as a class. By no means was it a perfect paper, I did get some stuff wrong. However, my professor is a firm believer that if we get marked off for stuff he doesn't like then we should get rewarded for stuff he does.

That is how I got a 106% and still got some wrong.

I am not a person that can hide my feelings well, unless it comes to crying then I'm pretty good. But when I am happy I can't help but smile and boy have I been smiling today.

I'm pretty sure everyone in the class knows who paper they were all looking at as my professor went over everything he liked. I couldn't quit smiling.

It's funny to think that I was so terrified to take this class for fear the professor would tell me I couldn't write and I needed to choose a different major. It's nice to have validation that, although I'm not perfect, I can write.

Hopefully someday I won't need others to validate me. I will have the self-esteem in myself that I will just enjoy when others like what I write but I don't need them to like me. I know I can't please everyone all the time, probably not even some of the time, but if I can enjoy me for me I will be fine with that.

Until then this day has been great validation.