I’m still struggling in my late twenties, yet my peers are doing great things; married with a wife and kids, and a good job. When I compare my life with theirs I’m miles away with no hope of catching up.

Life can make you question why things don’t always work out your way. You may even blame others for your failures, accuse people of bewitching your life as if you’re that important, you may also feel as if God has forsaken you. But what can we do as a black society who believe in almost everything. The reality of life is that things don’t always go according to your plans. I mean, my life plan from high school was very simple – complete my matric with at least one “A” in Language because I knew I was good at it, then go to university for four to five years with a degree or diploma in hand and get a good job.

I remember those days. I was not a straight “A” student but I worked damn hard to get good grades. I had sleepless nights and study groups were my daily bread during exams. I wanted to make my mom proud and be the first one in my family to get matric and make a difference at home. Since I’m not from a rich family, I was the golden ticket to a better life.

All I wanted was to make my dreams a reality. When you growing up it’s so simple to paint your future; work, buy your dream house, drive luxury cars, go on holiday and live your life without any obstacles along the way.

God as my witness I did my best during my exams. But guess what? I failed. Can you imagine the disappointment? I only needed one mark to obtain a pass. I did a re-mark but still no luck at all. I became depressed, bitter and angry but I had no one to blame but the person I saw when I looked in the mirror. I guess life isn’t fair.

Can you imagine your dreams disappearing before your eyes, everything you hoped and believed in turned to dust. Failing my matric was the biggest setback in my life. People say if you fall dust yourself off and try again. I did the same thing, wrote my supplementary exam not once, but twice and I still failed.

Life can kick you when you’re down, then you ask yourself why bad things happen to you, what have you done wrong to the universe to deserve such things. I thought about ending my life but what would I have achieved by doing that other than bringing sorrow and misery to my family. How would I have faced my creator, how would I explain my actions to Him? Maybe this was a test to prepare me for future struggles because I believe failure is the root of success. God will not give you a challenge that you cannot overcome.

After seven years I finally got my matric because I never stopped believing and trying. Now I’m studying part time while working on the side but what can we do, it’s life. I’ve realised that life isn’t fair sometimes.

Tell us: What do you think about the writer’s perseverance to succeed?