The event is still fresh as mint in my brain. It shattered me from all the conceivable angles. Sparkling eyes left with no tears to express the pain felt in the nook and cranny of my bluish heart and soul. Preparation for the Further Mathematics examination in the best possible way, from my perspective, resulted in the lowest score of all time. Mind halted. Energy out of stock. Soul abandoned.

The only picture that got sketched in my subconscious was a short Chinese man with faithful eyes conquering all frustrations, Jack Ma. Although rejected for more than a quarter century by Harvard, no significant sign of hopelessness showed in him. The faith that he had in himself did not diminish. Mustering up all courage and giving continuity to perseverance, he reached where he was supposed to.

Not to a magnificent degree but to a certain proportion, energy radiated from my heart to the entire body. Uncountable gargantuan failures could not break the determination of Ma, mine was just a first tiny one. It would not make much difference, I consoled myself.

Indeed, life is not always a bed of roses. Can we imagine a piece of land that has experienced only sunlight? Optimum fertility needs both rain and sunlight. Life is a concoction of copious successes and failures. Good stuffs are easy enough to handle but not the bad ones. Therefore, managing failures cautiously is what should be our priority. To make that turn into a reality, a bit of faith is must.

Let me share another story. M.S. Dhoni, the robust protagonist and ex-Indian cricket captain, returned to the pavilion empty-handed in his debut match. The choices he had at that moment: visiting the bathroom to fill the tub with tears or having faith and getting prepared for the next match. He chose the latter. As a result, the scoreboard highlighted a century of runs next to Dhoni’s name. What is the lesson we learn from this excerpt?

Recollecting all these motivating thoughts, I sincerely did what I was supposed to do in the present. Not only faith but also a lot of hard work and time were to be invested in the right way.

Slowly and gradually, every drop of sweat of mine helped me become a perfect warrior with skills and fearless of grades. I waited patiently for the next examination, although with a bit of nervousness in my head. At the end of the day, I excelled in my Further Mathematics examination.