“Not again!” snapped Aliya, sulking at the marks she had attained in her maths test.

It seemed as if failing in the math test had become a part and parcel of her life. Despite her efforts, she had been unable to perform well. Tears brimmed in her eyes, which shone like stars behind her square-rimmed glasses. She quickly shoved the paper into her bag before any classmate could make a cheeky comment on her.

Effortlessly, using the back of her palm, she was wiping the tears that trickled down her cheeks when her teacher Mrs Leena noticed her. She came to Aliya’s desk and, in a soft voice, asked her to see her during recess.

Wondering what could it be, Aliya waited impatiently for lunchtime. Finally, when the bell rang, she made her way to Mrs Leena who was sitting behind her huge desk, busy correcting a pile of notebooks. As soon as she saw Aliya, she kept everything aside and gestured for her to sit on the empty chair beside her.

She carefully studied her face and with a bright smile cleared her throat and said, “You seem to be anxious about something. I think I know what’s bothering you. If you allow me I think together we may come up with a good solution, hmm… what do you say, my dear?”

With a quizzical look, she stuttered, “Well ma’am, you know I have been struggling in maths since the beginning of the term. It seems as if no matter how hard I work, I am unable to get the desired result. I feel so upset,” she said sadly.

“You need not be so glum. Remember this always, that you lose when you give up and I don’t think you want to do that,” consoled Mrs Leena.

“How can you be so sure that I will not falter this time?” enquired Aliya innocently. “Very simple,” encouraged Mrs Leena, “with these three key ingredients: hard work, determination and resilience, you will move ahead and succeed. It’s always the first step that’s difficult, but once you decide not to look back and not give up, you will be successful my dear. Come on, gather yourself and let’s work on it together.”

Mrs Leena asked Aliya to first devise a study plan for herself. Next, she told her to list down all the topics she found difficult to comprehend. She advised Aliya to work on each topic one at a time, until she had gathered command over it. She told her to come up to her with any difficulties she comes across and suggested a few helpful online tutorials to work her way through.

A feeling of optimism enveloped Aliya as she made her way back to the classroom. She had understood that no matter how hard it would get, she would not yield in.

From that day onwards, Aliya worked hard, religiously followed her teacher’s advice and practiced hard. Each day she used to focus on a single topic, pick out the difficult questions and attempt them until she got a grip on them. By the time the final exams drew close, she had thoroughly revised her math syllabus and had left no stone unturned in her preparation.

On the exam day, pangs of anxiety welled up inside her and a fear of failure twitched her stomach. Sweat trickled down her face as she made her way into the examination hall. As she perched on the assigned seat, she reminded herself not to fret, but to think about the immense hard work she had invested this time which would certainly not go in vain.

She made a small prayer and began to solve the paper meticulously. After an exhaustive period of two hours, when the invigilator finally asked the candidates to hand in their exam scripts. Aliya did was to hope that she had hit the nail hard.

Her hard work bore fruit when she passed her math exam with flying colours. It was unbelievable for her to see an A grade written against maths on her report card. Clutching the report card in her hand, Aliya dashed towards the staffroom to express her gratitude to Mrs Leena.

“A well-deserved A grade!” Mrs Leena complemented as she gently patted Aliya on the back. “It couldn’t have been without your guidance,” uttered Aliya.

“It’s your resilience in the face of adversity that made you succeed my child. Just never let it go.”

“I won’t,” promised Aliya gleefully.

True indeed, as beautifully said by Nelson Mandela: “It always seems impossible until it’s done”.

Published in Dawn, Young World, November 18TH, 2023