Written by: Ethan Teh (Sec 1-6, 2023)
The sun climbed high and shone its rays of light across the whole country.Students stood tall and confident,with their crisp uniforms and their school badges glistening in the glaring light.Before school started,students were already marching into school,chit-chatting along the way.I was no exception too.
Today was the day I would receive my English exam results.The whole class was in a mix of emotions, with some being excited, while others being downcast.The shrill ring of the bell signaled that the time had come for us to collect our results.I made a beeline for the classroom and saw Mrs Tan sternly marching into the classroom. She declared, ”Students,you will be receiving your results today. As I call your name please come forward to collect it. Her voice reverberated throughout the classroom.
“Josh….,May…..,Ethan!”
It was my turn! I swiftly made my way to the front and snatched the results from Mrs Tan’s hand.Before she could say anything, I exclaimed”Only 89?”
Mrs Tan replied, “Ethan,you got the best result in the class! What do you mean only 89?” She looked at me with a bright smile.
I thought to myself, “This can’t be true…”
I had burned the midnight oil daily for the exam to get a 90, so that I could get a new computer from my dad, who always had high expectations for me.I reluctantly dragged my feet to my seat and flopped onto it. I flipped through the booklet just to ensure my marks were right.Suddenly, realisation dawned upon me that Mrs Tan had forgotten to add one mark to my overall.Without a second thought, I skipped my way to Mrs Tan and pointed the mistake out to her .However to my dismay,she shook her head signaling the mark was not counted.Following that,she showed me that I had a spelling mistake which led to a reduction of my marks.
I was infuriated at that time so I snapped at her and said, ”You are just totally being biased! You wrinkled face!”
Everyone gasped in awe as they never expected me, a kind-hearted person, to be rude to a teacher.I was fuming in anger as I did not believe that spelling would not affect overall marks.
Then she warned me, ”Watch your tone Ethan! Just admit that you cannot spell!’
This too made the class go hysterical as everyone knew that Mrs Tan was a warm person.That was my final straw .I clenched my fists and furrowed my eyebrows. I stared at her with anger. If looks could kill,she would have perished by now.To prevent myself from being humiliated in front of my classmates, I darted at her and vented my anger on her. I managed to land a few blows on her.
Mrs Tan shouted at the top of her lungs commanding me to stop at once.However her command did not go through my head. A team of discipline teachers heard the commotion and rushed to the classroom.They pulled me away and sent me to the general office.My face was still flushed with anger and I was going berserk.After soothing me, the head-teacher questioned me about the incident. After talking to me they realised it was partly my fault for being so defiant and also partly Mrs Tan’s fault for making fun of my spelling. In the end,the head-teacher made us apologise to each other.Knowing my mistake.I bowed deeply to Mrs Tan and vowed never to commit such a act again.She also gave me a pat on my back and apologised for making bad remarks towards me.
After this unforgettable experience,I learnt never to be disrespectful to my elders and to control my temperament whatever the case,so as to build a much more friendlier environment.
MJR World of Words 