I finally understood why my mother had been saying all these things. She didn’t want to hurt me. She wanted to help me. And she couldn’t with English. That’s why she was constantly pushing me to do math. I wanted to say to her, Mom, have faith in me. I can do it on my own. I figured the front desk out on my own, didn’t I? “Don’t worry, Mom,” I said to her. “You don’t have to always help me. I can do it.”
