Peeling back those gummy envelopes,

The sticky residue, clinging to the nails that claw

To get inside, see those numbers that will make

Or break a life, or so they say. Because, come on,

How many of us knew the twists and turns our life would take

Back then when jobs seemed glamorous, we longed

For pay checks even though it meant the selling of our souls?

But mums and dads still crowd the playgrounds with

Their crappy cameras, ready for the jump of joy

Or wrapping arms around the tearful ones

Who didn’t make the cut. The truth is though,

That we love you anyway. Get an A or F,

We don’t care. We’ll still sit back that night and think

Of all your battles on the way, knowing

You overcame them all and won it anyway.

It’s GCSE results day here in England, and in our household we have a Year 11, so I sent him off to collect his little envelope of results this morning. He planned to stay out with his friends so I asked him to text me a picture of his results and I couldn’t be prouder.

This year’s cohort have had a real roller coaster of a year and they should all be proud, but I do remember that weight of expectation when I picked up my own exactly twenty years ago. As a sixteen year old it feels like life and death and you are convinced that parents will only love you if you have done well.

But the truth is….we all cry happy tears no matter what, because we have seen your battles. We love you for everything you fought through.

And if you did get results that are disappointing, there is still a whole exciting world out there. I did great in my GCSE’s and then bombed out on my A-Levels and I felt like my whole world had caved in. But life is full of so many amazing opportunities.

And another little secret….money isn’t everything. You may think you want to be a lawyer now, but when you are balls deep in 100 hour weeks with no end in sight, a nice little job in your local holiday park suddenly sounds like a dream, despite the minimum wage.

Much Love

Rachel xx