Mawufemor worked hard at his job as a truck-pusher in the market, and at his studies later in the evening and throughout the night too. He experienced several challenges in Mathematics and Science; they appeared somewhat abstract to him. But Mr Mensah spurred him on.
"Look here, young man," Mr Mensah would say. "I read a story of three young men in the 1970s who were truck-pushers much like you. They received home tuition, took the O-Level and A-Level exams, and passed."
“I believe you can also make it. You may repeat that story!”
Mawufemor believed him, but it was always a matter of the spirit willing but the flesh weak. To make matters worse, the market boys made it a point to constantly mock him.
"When are you going to start school, Professor?" One would mock.
"Professors go to school!" exclaimed another. "They don't sit at home reading foolish books that an old man gave them. "Do you even have a place to live?" Another one would smirk!
On two occasions, the unscrupulous youngsters gathered all of Mawufemor's books and set fire to them. This was to prevent him from wasting his hard-earned money on useless books and living in a fool's paradise. Mawufemor had fought with one of the youngsters till he was bloodied on one of those occasions. Mr Mensah invited him to live with him in his house, which was a single room with a porch at Mantse Agbona behind the market. Mr Mensah shared the room with his wife and four children. Mawufemor made his bed on the porch where Mrs Mensah cooked the meals. Mawufemor didn't mind that it wasn't entirely safe. His major concern was finding a place to sleep at night and a source of light for his studies.
Mawufemor had saved enough money by early 2010 because he no longer needed to buy food. He normally ate breakfast before going to work and supper with the Mensahs when he got home.
"You can now enrol in the Talent Restoration Academy for official teaching," stated Mr Mensah. "Then we'll register you as a private candidate for the WASSCE."
"Isn't that too soon? I believe I should start at the Junior Secondary School." Mawufemor suggested.
“No! The JSS is only there to get you ready for the SSS!"
"At this point, you've advanced beyond the JSS, and going to Talent would expose you to even more courses!"
Mr Mensah's experience as a former basic school headmaster won the day. So, in the middle of 2010, Mawufemor enrolled at the Talent Restoration Academy and also registered as a private candidate for the WASSCE to write the General Arts program.
Mawufemor's initial attempt was marred by failure in all subjects. He only passed English and Core Math on his second attempt the following year. He decided to give up completely, but Mr Mensah wouldn't let him. He kept encouraging him to try again. Finally, Mawufemor agreed to register for the third time.
Meanwhile, Mawufemor tried his best to assist with the upkeep of the house as Mr Mensah’s paltry earnings from his newspaper vendor job and his monthly pension payment wasn’t enough to fend for the family. Mawufemor made it a point to always contribute daily with money for the meals in the family without being asked. Mr Mensah's children, who were all born after dad reached fifty, were continually expelled from school for failing to pay their fees. He made it a point to be contributing towards their tuition as well. This endeared him to the Mensahs even more.
Mawufemor took on more jobs to be of greater assistance. He learned electrical wiring and repairs from a kind random person, and brickwork from bricklaying books. When business wasn’t going well in the market in the early afternoons, he'd dash to a construction site to work as a bricklayer or a construction hand. He made and saved a lot of money by doing these side jobs.
Back at home, he concentrated all of his efforts on his studies, leaving no stone unturned. Instead of his usual four hours of study, he increased his time with his books to eight hours at night: from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m.! This boosted his confidence because he had covered a lot of ground in all subject areas.
In the preparations for his third attempt at the WASSCE, calamity struck—again!
TO BE CONTINUED...
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