..... I received my first B, of my college journey on an English Comp 2 critical essay. Years ago, in high school, I would have been ecstatic to have received a B on an assignment. Not anymore. I was crushed when I saw the letter B next to my name. "I do not earn B's", I said. "The professor must be wrong!". I immediately emailed my professor to ask for further clarification as to why I had earned an A on this paper I worked so hard on. Then, I called my mother almost in tears. She could not understand why I was so distraught over a B. To most people a B is a good grade, often a grade worth celebrating. For me, it meant I had failed. I did not do as well as I know I can.
After a sleepless night and many long hours of contemplation over what I did wrong, I have come to the realization that this B I am beating myself up over is actually a blessing in disguise. It could not have come at a better time. That imperfect grade is exactly the motivation I needed to try harder. To keep striving to earn my next A. A wise man once told me that perfection does not start out as perfect. You have to make thousands of mistakes and try and fail repeatedly before you can achieve anything close to perfection. Any great writer will tell you they have written hundreds if not thousands of drafts that were mediocre before they wrote the one that sells millions.
Almost a year later, and those words still resonate. Thank you Sabatino Mangini, for reminding me that receiving an imperfect grade does not mean failure. It just means I need to keep practicing.