Eagle Scout Recommendation for Ben
When we look around at all the young men that we know, there
are always those that stand out.
They are accomplished, talented, wonderful young men. Everyone is always pointing to them as
examples and guiding lights for the other young men around them.
Well, Ben is not one of those fortunate young
men. He has struggled with
challenges his entire life. As a
young elementary student he was diagnosed with a learning disability. He could still not read at the
beginning of third grade. Sheer
will, determination, and the help of loving teachers and a (sometimes) patient
mother got him through that hardship.
Unfortunately, he also suffered from a profound lack of fine motor
skills, which led to extremely bad handwriting and not a lot of success in
athletics on the playground. Due to the stigmatism of those years, he had
problems with developing friendships.
He always seemed to be the odd one out. It is a hard thing to feel like you have no one to invite
over to your house. However, he
stuck it through those years and kept on going.
As he entered junior high, he continued to struggle. He was the butt of many classroom jokes
and ridicule. He developed a
strong thick skin which was actually contrary to his original loving nature as
a child. He became angry and hard
to manage, and it only continued to get worse and worse. Finally, we as his parents felt that
there was something more to this than just teenage angst. We took him for a professional
analysis.
The diagnosis was not good. Ben suffered from Bipolar disorder and suspected Aspergers. His world was spiraling out of
control. He experienced bouts of
euphoria and very little sleep followed by episodes of depression and suicidal
thoughts. If this wasn’t bad
enough, he also suffered from ADD, which was not treatable while he was on the
medication for Bipolar.
Amazingly enough, throughout all of these problems, many of
which were overwhelming even to his adult parents, Ben continued to try to do
his best. And honestly, sometimes
his best is not anywhere near as good as the best that some of those more
fortunate young men seem to achieve almost without effort. However, Ben’s best, although it may be
seem a more paltry offering, is truly an effort born of more desire, will, and sheer
gumption than anyone will ever know.
Every little success he has ever had has been born of years of
failure. Every C and B has been a
triumph over adversity that his teachers do not even begin to understand.
As we look back on our son’s mighty struggles and the few
accolades that he has to show for them, we feel that he has truly been an
example in our lives of the importance of doing your best, even when it seems
like it doesn’t change anything or that it doesn’t make much of a
difference. Ben will never be the
star quarterback or the homecoming king.
In fact, sometimes we wonder if he will graduate from high school. But the one thing that we don’t wonder
about is whether or not he is doing the best that he can. Because we know that in his own quiet,
unheralded, uniquely Ben way, he is, and for that, he is a hero and worthy of
this Eagle Scout Award in our eyes.
Mom and Dad
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