“Dear Mother, This is a secret that I kept to myself for 14 years. As you may know, I was not able…”

Dear Mother, This is a secret that I kept to myself for 14 years. As you may know, I was not able to graduate on stage for high school because I failed a number of classes and I attended adult school, but what you do not know is that I never finished school. I never received my GED. I have never told anyone because I feel like a failure in life. I do not want to be perceived as a failure by others, especially by you. This is something that has bothered me for a very long time and I’ve lied many times to try to hide that fact from everyone. It broke my heart when I lied to you and my father. Both of you were so proud of me after I had failed previously. It made me feel terrible when I told my brother multiple times that I was able to accomplish the classes I needed, but he was probably the only one that knew I was lying. I pushed back and told him otherwise. I am a pathetic person because of this. I know that you love and care for me, but it’s hard to feel the same for myself. I’m indeed a failure, and more so because I kept this inside myself for so many years. Writing this letter I feel that I can finally let go of all of these negative feelings about myself and be able to move on with my life. Maybe one day I can actually acquire my GED. That should be one of my life goals. Thank you for reading this letter. Yours Truly, Your Son