EXTRA SHEET

In schools nowadays, requesting for an extra sheet during a test or an exam is a real deal. Everyone perceives you as an intelligent person in the hall, but it’s not true in all cases.

In my first semester as a fresher, I was a complete novice to the standards of universities. Attending lectures was not a problem for me but when I didn’t feel like going to class, relaxation was key. Cool spots were my joints at school where relaxation is at its climax and personally, mingling with new people was not an issue for me. Despite that, I never missed tests. All these First-Class things mattered less too because well, “I can’t come and kill my self with school stress”, what mattered more was that I must have a good grade not below average.

On seeing different students studying in groups and individually at different corners, you could sense that we were in exams season. On the first day of exams, seated quietly in the hall with a black Oxford Mathematical set and a brown Casio calculator, having read my books pretty well as well as solved past questions the previous night, I was ready.

“Your time starts now” a lecturer from behind shouted as it was exactly 9: 00 am. The paper was scheduled for 2 hours and it was only 1 hour past when some students began side talking because they said they were through but were told to hold on. Meanwhile, there I was admiring the roofing materials as well as enjoying the cool breeze while chewing the cover of my biro staring into thin air in search of answers only to hear someone break the melodious silence,
“Excuse me, sir, I need an extra sheet”.

Ahh! that threw me into the state of pandemonium ruining all the ideas I was trying to gather. 10 minutes later, 4 different human beings from nowhere requested for an extra sheet simultaneously, this time around I was bathed in sweat with discouragement in my heart heading to submit since I got so pressed, promising myself to find out how and why these guys had exhausted an answer booklet with 10 pages for just four questions only. Just around the restroom, I received my answer when I overheard a group of students saying you tend to get recognized as a brilliant student.

The next day, I was ready to experiment with some big writing and space leaving skills on my papers all in the name of collecting extra sheets of paper. When I make a mistake, I will gladly cancel and continue afresh on the next page. At exactly an hour past the exam starting time, I majestically raised my hand in request for an extra sheet of paper. That moment was epic because I felt like a legend in the hall. Months after the exam, results were released, I was on the lookout for those extra sheet guys. My result was okay and practically better than our so-called intelligent extra sheet brothers.

Looking back now, my resolve changed one Saturday morning. In school, Saturdays are used for my regular sanitation routine, arranging clothes, ironing… in the process of flinging my black bag into my 7 feet tall wardrobe, a book fell out of the bag. It was a prize I won at a church’s competition, I skimmed through the introduction, and got so glued to the book with jottings after two hours. The book contents started giving me a rethink about my life, taking responsibility, and being the best in everything I do. No more cool spots either did I miss lectures again, night classes, and studying became my hobby.

It’s not all about collecting extra sheets of paper, but the quality of the content in that paper matters a lot. At first, I saw this act of requesting an extra sheet as showing off, a medium of seeking attention or causing distractions. A deeper understanding through the help of that book gave me an insight that there is no limit in expressing yourself. State your points correctly in your own understanding, and leave no room for criticism from people. This leads me to always remember to stay Safe, Simple, and Live Smart. As for my second semester’s result, I was the best in my department and faculty.