I never thanked her for it.
Back then, I didn’t see sacrifice.
For illustrative purposes onlySelf-acceptance resources
I only saw embarrassment.
When other students talked about parents who were lawyers or teachers or business owners, I avoided mentioning my family entirely. I became obsessed with building distance between myself and the life I came from.
Education became my escape route.
Every good grade felt like proof that I was different.
Better.
And when I finally got accepted into university, I acted like I had single-handedly conquered the world.
That night Elena called me.Family
I still remember exactly how her voice sounded.
Continue on the next page:
