June 30, 2007

It was the day when my results for the medical college admission tests were to be announced. I just woke up in the morning and was so nervous that I couldn’t even have breakfast and was just waiting for my father’s call, who had gone to see the results. Eager and tense, I could feel butterflies in my stomach. Eventually, the phone bell rang and it was papa. He said something to mom and hung up. Mom came to me and told me that I did not clear the test.

That was the moment I felt everything is over. I was shattered; my father’s dreams were wrecked. Since my childhood, my father always wanted me to be a doctor. He had a lot of expectations from me. He was so concerned about my studies (and still is) that he would never make any compromises when it comes to my education and always taught me the same. But that news just broke me. I knew there was nothing I could do. Maybe I didn’t work hard, or didn’t utilise my full potential, but I was just crying over the spilt milk.

That evening, when papa came home I couldn’t face him. He was not at all angry with me, but I could see the hopelessness in his eyes. And that was all because of me.

A month passed by, I didn’t know what to do. My father advised me to take admission test in a couple of private medical universities. I again became hopeful but I was a bit sceptical since these universities didn’t have much standard and the fee was colossal too. Still, I sat for the test for two private universities, but maybe God had planned something else for me and I got refused. Those were the most terrible days of my life. I still remember that I would wonder how I could ever be so dumb or sometimes curse my fate. But somehow I managed to never lose faith in God.

Months passed by, I had no option but to switch to another profession. Now I had to decide which profession to pursue. My mom advised me to do MBA. And I started preparing for the test, two months prior to the admissions at the universities. This time luck was on my side. To my surprise, I got admission in almost all the universities I applied to and these were the best business institutes. Oh! What a relief that was.

Today I am doing extremely well. I have realised that this is the place that was meant for me because I can work over projects and show my abilities in a much better way, which I would have been unable to do had I had taken medicine.

Nadia Hassan