My Parents Missed My High School Graduation For My Sister’s Gender Reveal Party. When I Asked Them To Reschedule, My Mom Said, “Stop Being Selfish. You Can’t Take Away From Her Special Day.”

“Stop being so dramatic, Matteo,” my mother, Carmen, said, not even looking up from her phone. “Your sister is finding out if she’s having a boy or a girl. This is a huge moment for her. You’ll have other graduations.”

I was valedictorian. Four years of perfect grades, captaining the debate team, volunteering at the animal shelter on weekends because it looked good on applications. All of it building to one moment at that podium in front of 2,000 people.

“Dad, you’re really going to miss this?” I asked.

He set down his coffee mug with that look he got when he’d already decided something and didn’t want to argue about it.

“Your mother’s right, Miho. The ranch is booked. The family’s coming in from Laredo and Corpus. We can’t reschedule now.”

“The ceremony is three hours. You could do both,” I suggested.

Carmen finally looked up at me, and I saw something in her eyes I’d seen a thousand times before but never really understood until that moment.

“Smart kids don’t need their families there. Mateo, you’ve always been fiContinue reading…