Finding this young girl looking unusually distraught today, I couldn't help but ask what the matter was. Apparently, her JAMB exam results turned out to be less than average and not impressive. She had been waiting unnecessarily long to finally get them, and now they aren't anything she could have hoped for.
Joint Admissions Matriculation Board examination—one of the examinations to take to qualify for admission into your chosen university to study in.
If I didn't know this girl for myself, I could very well just assume that she may not have prepared adequately enough, but I did know her to be hardworking and focused, even at such a young age. Something similar happened to the brightest minds in my class during my time about a decade ago, and so I also knew that these things with JAMB aren't always straightforward and anything could have happened.
Thankfully, we had had conversations before each time I went there to eat at her mother's restaurant, which she kind of is the manager of, so it was easy to remind her about how it was during my time. And so I proceeded with another story about another of my colleagues who was in a similar situation to hers.
"I had this friend of mine who scored similar to what you scored." I started. "He didn't get into the university the same year he took the exams, like some of us, and he also couldn't the following year." I continued. "Can you guess what happened to him?" I asked rhetorically. "He graduated, eventually. And he didn't just graduate from the department of mechanical engineering, similar to my course of study, but also from New Jersey, somewhere in the US." Her eyes widened in wonder.
"Now, that's not all about him. He is now a big artist. How? Well, during the times he was at home and not in school, he mastered his craft with drawing and painting on an iPad." Then I went on to describe what an iPad looks like. "And he's doing very well for himself now."
"What do you think he would think when he remembers what he scored in his JAMB exam about a decade ago?" I asked, but she couldn't give an answer. "He would only smile and be grateful for how far he has come despite his score then, most likely."
Urging her to not fret and focus on what's next and what had happened, I continued with my own story. I reminded her of a time in our previous conversations when I told her that I was nothing close to brilliant as a student in secondary school and that I even had six F9s at one time. Yet, there I was, standing as a Corper serving his country. Despite my beginnings, I made it through the university with good grades in mechatronics engineering.
No one, not even me, would remember how not-so-great I was as a student. Yet, I was cautious to let her know that I didn't think she wasn't hardworking or brilliant. I then let her know that, after observing her all these weeks of coming around to eat there, I could clearly see that she was indeed diligent and hardworking.
"Do you know how much of a blessing you are to your mother, relieving her of the workload you carry for her, and how much peace you and your younger sisters bring to her by being good children? You're already making her proud, and you can only continue to do so by forging ahead relentlessly."
Her WASSCE examination, one of those examinations for admission, was very good. The next thing in line is the UTME examination, the chosen school's own examination for admission. By being resilient and working hard for her UTME exams, her aggregate score could very well get her admission.
To put the cherry on the cake, I gave her a little money and sent her to get something she'd like. When she returned, I said to her, "Congratulations on your JAMB exam results, and very well done for coming this far. When the next one comes, give in your best as always." Like Tinkerbell's magic dust, her face lit up after it all. And then I picked up my bag and continued my journey to find a place to get some electricity to work for a while with.
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Results are temporary things and I am saying it instead of having the first position of my department and whatever I said is the reality. In the future people will ask me what I am doing or where I work. Nobody will ask me what my position was in university. We should try our best all the time but somehow failure comes and in that time we need to think about a bigger picture as you described.
Man, what you have said is the absolute truth, and it's solid! No one wants to see certifications alone. They want to see real world usefulness. It is very nice you finished first in your department, though. Shows how diligent you are as a person. What did you study again, bro?
I am a student in the fisheries department and I am still a student and within a few months, my graduation will be complete.
Very nice, man. I wish you all the best!
This is so beautiful—what you've done. You not only made her day but also inspired her to even do better next time, forge ahead, and be relentless.
It's true that results don't come out in accordance with the effort we put in; that doesn't mean we aren't smart, but it's just like any other setback and shouldn't weigh one down.
I'm glad you see it from this angle, brother. What matters is usually more than the results we get. I hope she carries on with the encouragement to do better for herself with the right mindset hereon.
The wise great man. True how things happen with Jamb. I heard once about how results are sold and stuffs happen. But you did an excellent job taking the girls mind of it and encouraging her to fight on.
Yeah, I have also heard about selling and swapping results. I am not sure how true that is, but it's safe so say that funny things happen with JAMB.
I think this is best post I have read today. You did not just encourage that little girl but gave her hope for tomorrow, that was kind of you.
Best post, eh? Thank you. I am only thankful that I tried to do something right when the opportunity came.
Wow. Corper Jay doing the impactful work. I so much love how you talked to her and also encouraging her to keep forging ahead. Life doesn't end when you fail or didn't meet up with your expectations, you only fail when you do not keep trying. I believe that girl had some nudge in her and would be inspired by those words of yours.
#dreemerforlife
I hear that you should do unto others what you would like them to do to you. I surely would have liked encouraging and supportive words, so I tried to...
I am sure you face this kind of thing every now and then. I imagine you do the same for your younger ones and students.
Yes, those who wants others to succeed would always do the same and it becomes more interesting when you have experiences to back up your words so they can be more serious and hopeful.
Spot on! it all becomes easier with the right people and the right words in their mouths.
I didn't give much attention to the results in general when I saw the news on social media about the low scores. The thing is that, the system is somehow not direct. Just look at what happened last year when the girl forged result. If the issue didn't escalate, we wouldn't have known that things like that are happening as a norm.
!BBH
@olujay! Your Content Is Awesome so I just sent 1 $BBH (Bitcoin Backed Hive) to your account on behalf of @kingsleyy. (6/20)
I stopped believing that there was complete transparency in these education systems a few years ago. I almost gave up, but I quickly learned what's more important eventually, and that's adding value. Like that girl faking the result, there are things that we just don't can't control.
Wow! This was a lovely read. Our very own Corper doing the most.
Sometimes just a little bit of encouragement goes a long way.
I can only imagine the number of negative comments she must have gotten just because she scored very low on her Jamb( I've been there) . Thanks for saving that young girl from being depressed. And for the extra tips for her treat. You're doing amazing ❤️.
#dreemport
Heh. Yes o. Corper Jay doing the most. Lol. Thank you. I'm be done in a month, by the way.
I am not sure if she has gotten negative comments so far. She didn't seem like she had told many people yet, but I imagine people thinking that she really isn't a hardworking person judging by her score. The people she had told at that time only gave her encouraging words, like her mother and sisters, which was good.
Oh really! That was fast. Not me thinking you're passing out upper month. My bro was supposed to go for his service jul ending, so he said.
I'm glad her family were there for her and also encouraged her .
You mean in July? Nah. I'll be done at the end of June instead.
Wow! That's like tomorrow 😩.how fast time flies.
Nah. I'll be done at the end of June. Thanks, Meya.
Oh okay, you're welcome 🤗