That Boy Is A Lazy, Good-For-Nothing Dropout ... blog by Shelley Carppe

He didn't even start to talk till he was 4. His teachers say he's lazy and won't make anything of himself.

He's a social misfit, who failed his music class.

He was dropped from his high school basketball team.

He has dyslexia, and drops out of high school.

After dropping out of high school (at 14), he joins a gang, and spends time in prison.

He is arrested multiple times, and goes to rehab for alcohol and drug abuse.

He grew up in a tough neighbourhood, he was the wrong colour, he failed 9th grade 3x, he didn't stand a chance.

He was Albert Einstein
He was Elvis Presley
He is Michael Jordan
He is Richard Brandson
He is Mark Wahlberg
He is Robert Downey, JR
He is Marshall Bruce Mathers III - now known as Eminem.

What your son is now, is not who he will be. Do not spend time despairing that he will ever make something of himself. Do not think that the teenager he is, will be the man he becomes. Don't feel like you've failed as a parent. Don't give up on him.

Do allow him the space to rest, and learn, and grow. Do, quietly and confidently, continue to instil in him the virtues of persistence, and integrity, and respect. Do continue to wrap him in your unconditional love, no matter how smelly or prickly or gangly or rude he may seem.

Today, he could seem to be a lazy, good-for-nothing dropout. Tomorrow, he could change the world for the better- for one person, for some people, or for many.