Staring at the blood-red large “C” on my quiz, I could almost hear the sound of my broken heart. I knew this was not the end of the world, but I really hoped it was. I had been trying so hard in Honors Modern European History, but why did it fail to turn out in the way I expected every time? I should have listened to my adviser and given up. Maybe this challenging course was not right for me, an international student, who has English as the second language and a great disadvantage in reading and writing.

After getting straight As in World Culture last year, which deeply inspired my interest and built my confidence in history, I was recommended to take Honors Modern European History in my sophomore year. I had heard that this course would be really difficult for a tenth grader, but I believed I was ready for the challenge.

However, after having the first week of class, I was overwhelmed. The teacher was talking too fast and using a lot of jargon I did not know, such as “bourgeoisie.” Therefore, I couldn’t understand her two-thirds of the class, let alone taking notes or participating in class discussions. I had too many questions, so I did not know what to ask. Also, the reading homework always took me more than three hours to finish, and I was likely to miss key points of the reading, which was reflected in my grade. I began to question, myself whether I was as good at history as I thought, because I was failing the class. Nevertheless, I didn’t want to give up so early. Saying “I can do it!” is easy, but attempting to face and to overcome difficulties is always the hardest thing.

I learned from my mistakes and started to come to class prepared. I looked up the background information of the topic we were going to discuss online ahead of time. In this way, I could have a general understanding which might help me to better understand the teaching, and have a chance to search all the new words related to the topic. Moreover, I went over our reading with other students before the class to make sure I had the correct understanding and didn’t miss anything. I definitely spent much more time on Honors Modern European History than before, and I looked forward to receiving a better result to reflect my hard work.

However, getting two Cs on quizzes was like a thunderbolt out of a clear sky to me. At that time, I was seriously considering dropping this course. I locked myself in my bedroom, sat on my small bed, and used up half box of tissues to dry my tears. I called my parents, who were overseas, and choked out: “Mom and dad, I really can’t take this any more. This is totally unfair! How comes my hard work didn’t pay off?”

My mom tried to comfort me in a really sweet voice: “Honey, please stop crying, you’re breaking our hearts. I understand how hard you have tried, and all your efforts are not in vain. They’re just like naughty elfins, hiding somewhere, waiting for the right opportunity to come out and to help you in the end. If they don’t come out, it’s not the end. You just have to be patient, and keep trying.”

She did make me feel better. I wiped my tears and decided to give my history class one last try. I wouldn’t go to sleep without thinking over different sides of every argument and discussed them with my friends. I wrote eleven pages of notes to analyze and review every revolution in the 18th and 19th century, so I was fully prepared for the class and any coming quizzes or tests. I couldn’t get more than five hour of sleep during that time, and the uncertainty of the result was still stressing me out. Yet, the idea of giving up never popped out of my head, and I began to enjoy the painful process little by little.

My mom was right that persistence is always rewarded in the end. When I received my first and second As on in-class essays, I was over the moon. After the parent-teacher conference, my host mom told me: “Your history teacher said you had the best essay in your class on last test. She was worried about you at beginning, but you made a leap this trimester!” This was too good to be true. I felt so relieved that my hard work in the last few months did pay off. In addition, I was even more thrilled, since I got out of my comfort zone and achieved my goal without stopping at the tearful moment.

This improvement didn’t mean I wouldn’t face difficulties in my history study any more. I was continuously struggling, but I knew perseverance, the most important trait of success, would help me to reach the other shore. Doggedness is not only having determination to achieve something even if it’s so difficult for me, but also going above and beyond when I want to give up. Failures are opportunities to grow, and finding solutions to a problem time after time itself is success. Persistence also means being patient and having a positive attitude during the process, and always looking forward to better result.

I still remember how terrified I was at the beginning of the school year, but now I can’t believe how much perseverance has helped me to become fascinated by my history class.