Exams Were They That Important

Working my way through Secondary school was actually quite enjoyable. Time didn't really have much of a meaning, looking forward to school holidays, generally getting on with everyone and lots and lots of exams.
Reaching the 5th year was when the majority of exams were taken, a week didn't seem to go by without revising or taking another test. It's fair to say I took it in my stride, I suppose I was conditioned to it, it was what was expected of me.
One thing I did know though and that was I wasn't ready for the world of work, simply I felt too young, too inexperienced. My intentions were to have more of the same and that was to stay on for the VIth form.
The GCE and CSE results were pretty good and left me with a fairly straight forward decision of what I was going to take. Maths, because I had an excellent teacher, very systematic, logical, focused and respected. For me all the top ingredients for a role model, he also became my form teacher for the two years, Mr 'Pancho' Pearson. Sorry, but to this very day I do not know what Pancho stood for, it was the nickname he had and who was I to argue with that. Metalwork and Physics were the other two options. Metalwork because I enjoyed the practical and 'precise' methods and Physics because it made 'practical' sense although I had always struggled with it.
VI form was a real enjoyment, lots of work both at school and later at home but I lapped it up. For me it wasn't easy but I was in with a great bunch of people.
Throughout those two years I worked away, but always struggled with Physics, from the 5th year I only achieved a CSE grade 2 which wasn't good enough to study the A Level. However, the school let me do it, but I would have to take the O Level so that I could continue. Each time I took the O Level (3 times in all over the 2 year period) I failed with a Grade D. The school must have felt pity on me and still let me take my A Level Physics exam.
In the interim period I was applying for apprenticeships and I gained a place in the dockyard as a Technician Apprentice subject to me gaining an O Level pass or higher in Physics. My life appeared to be mapped out, what could stop me, I was preparing myself for the 'sausage factory' of life but...... things didn't go to plan.
On the day of the A Level results I cycled to school, I had nightmares about my results previous to this day, anyway they were nightmares and surely they couldn't come true... could they?? On looking at my results slip reality kicked in hard, very hard. I'd passed my Maths, just, only an O Level pass at Metalwork (I had spent 3 hours in an exam answering a question that when I finished I re read and realised I'd got it wrong) and worse to come FAILED Physics. From that moment I world as I knew it had imploded, no job in the dockyard, no sausage factory of life.
I was frantically looking around for excuses, my Physics teacher was to blame, he was crap, he couldn't teach, I had no chance with him. This result was being treated as someone else's buck to bear.... but in fact it was mine.
You see, I could have done something about it, I could have put into action things that would of given me a better chance of passing my Physics. I should have taken a leaf out of one of my friends books who arranged additional tuition with another teacher, he passed.
It wasn't until years later I accepted the responsibility of the buck stopping with me and me doing something about it.
So, the lesson to be learnt is be prepared to make change, don't blame someone else for your misfortune, take control and let the buck stop with you.
A year later I did pass my O Level Physics, even though it was too late for the dockyard, it wasn't too late for me.