Yievinyii Naga
President , Hiekha+NagaNext Education Initiatives
To every student in Nagaland who didn’t make it through the board exams, I am not speaking from a distance, I am speaking from experience. I know what it feels like to see a result and feel your chest tighten, to feel like everything you worked for just collapsed in one moment. I know the fear of facing people, the quiet shame, the questions in your mind asking what now. I have been there.
And I need you to hear this, this is not where your story ends.
There was a time I thought failure defined me, I questioned my worth and my future, but looking back now I understand that moment did not destroy me, it redirected me. It forced me to grow in ways success never could, it built strength inside me that I did not even know existed.
Right now it hurts, so cry if you need to, let it out, it does not make you weak, it means you are human, but do not stay there. Do not let this moment convince you that you are less. You are not a mark sheet, you are not a number, you are a human being with purpose, with potential, with a future that is still open.
Take your time, then stand again, even if it is slow, even if it is painful, because one day you will look back at this moment and realize this was your turning point.
To the parents, please be more gentle, your child is already fighting a battle inside, your words right now can either break them or build them, choose to stand with them, not against them.
And to you reading this, you are not alone, I made it through my lowest point and so will you, this is not your ending, this is where your comeback begins.
