Life isn't fair, but it's still good. - Robert Frost
Growing up as a young lady in Africa, I always thought the world was against me. I think most people are yet to come to terms with the fact that not only women find it difficult out there. In as much as we talk about how women are being discriminated against out there, now the world is evolving and our men are no exception when it comes to discrimination.
You find most men talking about how the system has been made to favor ladies more because of the whole women empowerment movement. But , what I know is that, no one is below discrimination, whether male or female.
Allow me transport you back to my days in primary and junior high school. I don’t mean to brag but damn, I was a good student. If you knew me then, you’d probably be crushing on me because I was too good to be true. I give all the thanks to my parents because they never ceased to help me with anything that had to do with my academics. I always topped my class right from nursery up until junior high and that was when things started to change.
At that particular time, we were in junior high 2 which meant that we were closer to writing our basic education certificate examination which is to be taken by Jhs 3 students. As usual, every Monday mornings we had our early morning mental after assembly, then we have integrated science class before our first break. It’s funny how I still have this timetable in my head like it was yesterday. That year, as we moved from Jhs 1 to 2 , we had some new students join us from others schools and everyone is always happy to have a new student in their class. If you know what I’m talking about.
We had two new students join us in our class, a male and female. Sadly, these students were lost most of the time when we had lessons because their previous schools didn’t really pay much attention to them due to their number. They were really lacking behind in class so one of our teachers decided to have extra classes for them. It wasn’t free though.😅 If I remember right, it was 50 Ghana cedis per month and that was a lot of money then.
Initially, the extra classes was for just two students but gradually everyone in the class wanted to join in so the number started to move from 2 to 4 to 6 and eventually almost the whole was taking part. I had heard my classmates talk about how they only joined because they heard our teacher had been giving these students the exams questions to study before the exams and even mid term exams questions. I didn’t really pay attention to that because I didn’t think my teacher would stoop so low to that extent.
I’m a few weeks time, I was the only one who wasn’t enrolled in this extra classes. We would close for school and my dad would come pick me up to the house where I would have my own extra lessons with my special teacher. No one knew about that.😂
Mid term exams came and that was when my fears came to reality. I came across these students enrolled in my teachers extra classes learning a particular set of questions ahead of the exams and I didn’t pay attention to it. Funny enough, everything they studied dropped ditto ditto. I wasn’t happy, at all.
I had competition which I loved so much but what I hated was the fact that this competition was a farce. Terminal exams came and I dropped from 1st to 2nd. I knew I didn’t deserve 2nd position because I studied too well for this exam only for someone to have the questions and just learn them to beat me in exams.
I went home and reported to my parents. I even told them to enroll me in my teachers extra class.😂😂 My dad outright said no. He didn’t raise me to be a cheat. I didn’t talk to him for a week but later my mom consoled me everyday saying, it’s life and that this is just the beginning of the journey. There will be more things like this in my life and I have to be strong amidst it all. I finally found ways and means to calm down and learn harder to come back for my title which I did in the next terminal exams.
Thinking about it all today, life is indeed unfair and sometimes the people we look up to are those that actually try to pull as down. In this life, learn to look out for yourself because there’s always people out there trying to break you. Life is not fair, so go easy on yourself.
all images belong to me.
