Tonight was one of those nights when I was reminded of how wonderful, special, and beautiful my daughter is. Tonight, my daughter was honored with 29 other students from her school for having a perfect 4.0 grade point average. As a single mother, I often find that I am harder on her than necessary because I think I have to do the job of 2 parents. I question myself all the time as a parent, but tonight I realized something. My daughter will be a success because of me and in spite of me. How wonderful it was to sit and watch my daughter interact with her friends, her teachers, and the administrators from her school. She was the picture of manners and beauty. Her speech was impeccable. Her table manners were polished and refined. As she shook hands with the row of teachers responsible for helping me with keeping up with the education of my beyond-intelligent child, she looked each one in the eyes and said, "Thank you." I know I can relax a little because I got to see tonight the fruits of my labor. I was permitted into my daughter's social and educational setting to see a glimpse of my daughter the only way others see her. I don't have to be so hard on her anymore because she has gotten a taste of what the world has to offer her if she works hard and believes in her own education. Sure, she may only be in the third grade, but even to a third grader there is an awareness that she is one of the 30 out of 400 students who were honored for one night as the best of the best. And my goodness, did she shine!