Less than 2 years later, My mother was no longer living, she succumbed to the disease that k**ed my father three years prior, But the feelings of letting her down lived deep in my heart, right next to the images of her body breaking apart, and directly under that, these words were engraved really dark. "Education is Everything"!! It finally hit me, These are the words that she wanted to instill in me, before she had to leave, She knew she didn't have much longer to live due to this disease, She knew I would be, an "orphan", Through my many trials and tribulations, These are the words that helped steer me in the right direction, Straight to perfect attendance, above the honor roll, right through high school, with great grades, because I always remembered that day, and the painful expression on Mama's face, And when it came time to apply to colleges, to write an essay for multiple scholarships, "Education is Everything" was exactly what I titled it, This was my motivation to be all I can be, to climb mountains with these words tattooed on my sleeves, looking down at it every time I was in dire need, Of Motivation.