Dear examinee,

The hour of truth is near at hand. The day of judgement has arrived. A whole year of penance is coming to an end. You've sharpened your pencils, packed your pens, zipped the bags, and wait to tie your shoelace before you set off to give it your all. Pages of notes, tens of formulae- they are all up there in your head. You've worked hard, offered prayers even, to get the best result you can. Your mother gives you a big hug as she sees you off at the door.

The droning of the engine and the hoots and horns of traffic are lost on you as you think of every possible question that can appear on that one sheet of paper that you think decides your fate. You walk into your exam hall. There it is- the seat assigned to you. Your own little corner space. Heaving a sigh, you sit down. Your hall-ticket stares back at you as you hold it between trembling fingers. You sit there waiting for the bell to go- for the exam to start. I bid you then to do one thing, not for me, but for yourself. I ask of you only one favour- heed my words just this once. That pen you hold in your hand will empower you as it flies across the pages. For the next three hours, you will focus on one and only one thing like you never have before. Here, you learn to focus. I tell you one thing now. Before you begin, take a deep breath. In... Out... In... Out... take one, two, three, as many as you can. Relax just this once and think of the journey you have had so far.

You're almost there at the one milestone you aimed for the whole year. This isn't your first hurdle, nor is it your last, but you will overcome it just as you have all times before this. This is not the end. It is the beginning. A good beginning. As a child, you learned to walk. You fell once, you fell twice. Today, not only do you walk, but you run. Back then, walking was your one goal. Now, you hardly think of it. On your first day of school, you were scared to leave the home you knew. Now, school itself has become like a second home to you as you prepare to leave it. Just the same way, you prepare to write your board exams now, and soon, you would have achieved what you set out to do.

Fear not, little warrior, for you will go on to fight another day. That paper they hand out to you cannot deny how much you have learnt and how far you will go. That paper is the road to your destination, not the destination itself. YOU are in power here, not that paper. Many years later, another child will look like you, nervous yet ready to take on that one paper. That day, you will say to them just as I now say to you- "You don't have to fear it. It'll be alright. The power is with YOU today."

Good luck.

With Best Wishes,

A student who was once like you.