In a keenly competitive class as ours, ‘Primary 4’ was the most cherished and conversely the most envied by tutors and other students respectively. Impressively, Ali and Moro could not in any way be contended with. These two smarts were far bigger ‘sharks’ than the rest of us.
Aside these two, all that any other student in our class could aim to settle for was to occupy the 3rd position. Given this limitation set by these extraordinary classmates of mine, my other half, Kamal, felt not short in always finding himself right behind Ali and Moro – who as well always came 1st and 2nd in that order. For me, hehehe! though I was not that stable, my fiercest rival was Muftawu – affectionately known as Ammonia. Ammonia and I kept battling for the 4th and 5th positions as it was the farthest we could go.
Quite weird and surprising, the administrator of Christ Revolutionary International School (C.H.R.I.S), Teacher Kofi, decided to initiate a quiz competition which was aimed to be contested by 2 representatives each from primary 4, 5 and 6. Weird! “How can you organize a quiz competition among different leveled students competing against one another? Is it fair?” – such was the reaction of these surprised pupils.
Well, as young as we were, how could we contend with the decision? As for primary 4, that thought as was running through our young minds was to restate that that enviable tag of ‘amazingly brilliant students’ our class was always associated with and loved for is no fluke. This subsequently became a termly activity and for that matter, the most awaited academic event on the school calendar.
The maiden edition of the C.H.R.I.S. quiz Competition was fast approaching as chosen representatives were rigorously preparing to face one another head-on. Of course, it is obvious I could not have thought of being on the team of representatives for primary 4 and this was very fair. The obvious picks were made as Ali and Moro represented our class to compete solidly against our seniors in the quiz competition. Our most brilliant classmates competed competitively and in the end, they impressively came 2nd behind contestants in primary 6.
Though they were sad for not clinching the topmost spot, the whole class admirably encouraged them as we held them in high esteem for their showcase of brilliance in the midst of their seniors. Hails and salutes for primary 4 was rapidly growing. Our representatives made us proud once more though they were sad for not occupying the topmost position.
Fast forward to the following term, the next quiz event took place and quite surprising to teachers and the generality of students, the best students in primary 4 were bottom this time round. The class’ previous pride and bragging rights was being gradually stripped-off. It was not a pleasant moment for all class members but we still had every bit of belief that Ali and Moro will surely recapture our fading glory at last. The whole class could only look forward to the 3rd Edition of the CHRIS competition which was scheduled to come off the following term.
The termly contest began to gain wild grounds and a source of pride for well-performing classes. Class teachers of participating classes were not left our of the fiercely entertaining battle. It was an event which brought fulfilling bragging rights to any teacher whose class carried the day during this ferocious encounter. Mr. Quarm – our class teacher, has not enjoyed any bragging moment yet. Sad.
To the amusement of students and for us ourselves, Kamus and I were selected to represent our class this time round. All that run through our minds that moment was, “Even the greats – Ali and Moro, couldn’t get it done, how much more Jamus and Kamus?” Our class teacher, Mr. Quarm, could only fall on his Plan B to see if that could yield any better result. After all, he had faced the worst already and it could not get any worst in giving his plan B an opportunity to try. Nevertheless, Mr. Quarm trusted in us and inspired us to prepare adequately. Undoubtedly, the brainy Muftawu equally deserved to be on the team. Most possibly, by replacing me but I guess by virtue of the fact that Kamus and I are twins and that we already have the synergy to match that level of teamwork needed to competitively compete got me favored to be a part of this.
We (Kamal and I) had never done something as magnanimous as that so the fear of failure was all over us. The 3rd Edition of the C.H.R.I.S quiz competition finally came off and lo and behold, the expected happened. We were severely beaten in terms of points. It was a sad spectacle as we came last. Primary 6 emerged winners as always. We had disappointed Mr. Quarm. His conviction of changing his team towards chalking his foremost success didn’t work out.
At this sad point, the fame our class had been enjoying vanished so quickly that we were turned into a laughing stock by pupils in lower primary. Our seniors barely mocked at us but they kept reiterating the Akan proverb,
” Abɔfra bɔ nwa na ɔmmɔ akyekyedie3 ” [ A child breaks the snail’s shell, not the tortoise’s ] “
Knowing that the 3rd edition which was organized in the final term was his last opportunity to have won with our crop of students in primary 4, Mr. Quarm irregularly pushed for another edition to again be organized the same term so he could give it a try for the last time. Irrespective of what happened in the 3rd Edition, Mr. Quarm surprisingly entrusted in Kamal and I once more. Wow! Despite the humiliation Kamus and I had caused?
Drawing inspiration from the pain in our previous failure, the only option we had was to relentlessly prepare with all eyes gazed towards victory. An assurance of not letting down the now less valued class for the fourth straight time was emotionally given. It was a touching period coupled with hope that our lost glory shall be recaptured.
The 4th Edition of the quiz competition took off. The competition was so much tensed but finally, we grasped the ultimate. For the very first time, awards were presented as representatives from primary 5 – who occupied the last position were awarded on pencil each. Primary 6 students – who had finally fallen, received a pen each whilst eventual winners – Primary 4 (which was us), finally received a pen and pencil each.
We were head-swollen as the gathering of students loudly applauded during that joyful moment. We had again reinstated that though our class may be the lowest among the competing class levels, we continue to be a force to reckon with. Our source of pride and bragging rights was restored and our class became dominant in the quiz competition ever after. Ali and Moro continued to stay atop of us all as their impressive exploits got them suddenly skipped to JHS 1 at a time we were moving to primary 5. Incredible
Reflecting on these happenings, Kamus and I still wonder how we got ourselves not only chosen to represent our noble class but also how we were able to go that long way in grasping the ultimate – whilst competing against our seniors. Being very fulfilling, among the two prizes that were given to us, the pen was the one we truly enjoyed. Embedded in this single pen were four different colors: red, blue, green and black.
A cue we can all pick from these recalled moments manifests in the saying,
” Life successes mainly depend on how failures are handled. “
Friend, in moments you face difficulties and contentions against your goals, remember to not be quick to give up. Trusting in the relevance of your quest, towards achieving what you strongly desire for, should be your motivating factor – irrespective of repetitive failures you encounter along the way. As we all wait for rights moments in our lives, let’s always remember that our forefathers were not wrong when they said,
“However long the night, dawn will break”.
Peace!
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