my son's first performance review

Yesterday evening I sat beneath the I-95 overpass talking to my son on the phone. He'd had his first performance review, three months into his first job, and because it is impossible for him to boast, gloat, brag, or exaggerate (not because he can't, of course, but because he won't), it took a while for me to get the news.

At the core of his great happiness was this simple fact: He is bringing everything he has to this job he found on his own and has shaped for himself. He is at the top of his game, working hard, doing what he loves. The sheer rightness of it makes him laugh.

There is so much my son continues to teach me about what goodness is all about. But last evening, listening to him as the cars roared overhead, I was reminded that the biggest rewards in life come from knowing that you've done your very best.

It's never about the blue ribbons. It's about living with yourself.