A Break for the Broken

To the student who stared at the question paper with no idea where to start…
To the one whose mind went blank… whose heart was beating fast… and who held back tears because they didn’t want anyone to see them break...

This one’s for you. 

My name is Abdullah Zahoor, and I just lived through that moment.

I walked into my Multivariable Calculus exam knowing it was my weakness.
I’m good at coding, databases, logic circuits — all of that comes easy to me.
But calculus?
That’s the one that always made me feel like I wasn’t enough.

I opened the paper…
And I froze.

Thirty minutes.
I sat still for thirty full minutes while everyone around me was writing.
My hands didn’t move.
My mind didn’t work.
And inside, I was crying — silently.
Wishing I could disappear.

I looked around and felt like everyone else had it figured out.
Like I was the only one failing.
But that wasn’t true.
And if you’ve ever felt that way — I want you to know:

You’re not alone.

---

Something happened after that.
I don’t know what.
Maybe Allah helped me.
Maybe it was the strength I didn’t know I still had.
Maybe it was just faith.

But suddenly… my hand moved.
My mind started giving me small steps.
I wrote.
And then I kept writing.
Not because I was sure — but because I refused to give up.

One of the answers?
I just guessed. I didn’t know what to do. So, I put “n = 1” out of instinct.
And later, my friend said the real answer was supposed to be π.
My answer? 3.14.

That’s when I realized:

Even in the middle of complete chaos… something inside me still wanted to fight.

---

So, here’s my message to you, whoever you are:

You might be struggling in one subject.
You might feel like you're not good enough.
You might have had moments where you stared at your paper, your screen, your future — and felt empty.

But you are NOT broken.
You are NOT weak.
You are NOT alone.

You are a fighter.

Maybe your strength doesn’t show in perfect marks —
Maybe it shows in the way you still show up every day.
Maybe it shows in how you stay kind, even when life is hard.
Maybe it shows in how you wrote something — anything — just to not leave the page blank.

That is strength.
And it’s the kind that no GPA can ever measure.

---

If you’re tired… it’s okay.
Take a break.
Breathe.
But don’t you dare give up on yourself.

I’m just a student — just like you.
No money, no fancy grades, no spotlight.

But I’m still here.
And so are you.

One day, we’ll take that break.
We’ll go on that trip.
We’ll find peace.
But until then — we survive. We grow. We help each other.

We rise.

---

— Abdullah Zahoor
The one who fought through the silence — and kept going.
You can too.