Wait, what?!?! I graduated with honors and had no idea!!!

I graduated college without realizing how I actually graduated. Somehow, I completely missed the small but very important detail that I walked away with Cum Laude honors.

You would think that after seven years of late-night study sessions, writing every single essay with just my eyes, running purely on V8 Energy drinks, and leaning hard on pep talks from my family and friends, I would have been fully aware of where I stood academically. But no. I truly believed I was just your average, “I made it, finally,” kind of graduate.

Graduation day was a blur. The gowns were way too big, the air was buzzing with nervous energy, and I had no idea what I was doing. The person in front of me moved, so I followed. They clapped, so I clapped. I smiled and nodded at professors like I knew what was going on, but I had no clue. When they said my name, I did not notice anything different or special. I just smiled and made my way across the stage, trying not to overthink it.

One moment did stand out. When I walked across the stage, people started clapping. It was loud. A few people even stood up. I remember thinking, wow, they must be really touched to see someone with a disability graduating from college. I actually laughed a little to myself, imagining they had never seen someone like me walk that stage before. I got emotional because I thought the applause was about my journey. I thought they were clapping for the fact that I made it.

But that was not why.

It turns out, they were not just clapping because I finished college. They were clapping because I finished with honors. I had no idea until that night, at my graduation party, when my dad casually dropped the biggest news of the day.

“You did amazing, sweetheart. Cum Laude. We are so proud of you.”

I blinked and stared at him. “Wait, what?”

“You graduated with honors. Cum Laude.”

I was completely stunned. My jaw dropped. I looked around and realized everyone else already knew. I literally had to check my diploma because I thought maybe he was joking or had read it wrong. But no, it was real.

After seven years of working my way through every course, writing entire papers using only my eyes, battling through impossible group projects, and submitting half my assignments with fingers crossed, I had not just graduated. I had graduated with honors.

And yes, I had to Google it myself. Cum Laude is Latin for “with honor.” It is given to students who graduate with a strong GPA, usually in the top twenty to thirty percent of their class. It is the starting level of academic distinction, just below Magna Cum Laude and Summa Cum Laude So apparently, that was me.

I had been so focused on just making it to the finish line that I never stopped to consider how well I was actually doing. For years, I felt like I was barely holding on, when in reality, I was thriving. I just could not see it yet.

The real lesson here is that sometimes people are not clapping just because you finished. Sometimes, they are clapping because you absolutely crushed it.