What happens when we fail ?

What happens when we realise we have failed, in academics, in marrage, or in our careers ?
It could not have hit me harder, as the computer paused and printed out my exam scores, "We are unfortunate to anounce that you have failed the exam" and that was it. All my 7 months of work down to a blip on the screen, failure.
So what happened afterwards, Firstly I could not believe it, even when i knew it was no mistake, then the realisation that it was true and then sadness. After leaving the exam venue, I asked myself, how do I tell my mom and dad about this ? how would they take the news after considering how much money they had put into me writing this certification, I was expecting words of disappointment from my father's lips, the last time I had "disappointed him was not far from his memory", my mom called me while i was on my way out, she asked how was it ? i told her what a typical Nigerian would say. "Thank God"; I was praying in my mind that my mom would not ask more questions about the issue, at least not by phone, Bad news is not good said on phone.
Next after sadness is the question of what went wrong, I asked myself what I had done wrong, but that did not solve my problem not at all later that day i saw her (my mother) I wispered what had happened in her ears, I did not want to tell my dad at least not yet. My dad does not take bad news well in cars.
My mom's reply to my confession was simple, well you just have to do exam again.
I was not the best answer but the reality is that thats just what i needed to do, start over again.
Ultimately what happens when you fail, is that you get an opportunity to start all over. and that may actually be the best news anyone can ever get. Why is that ? well its an opportunity to Win.

Oh, about telling my dad about my failure, well it was not so bad, guess he was too tired about the journey and knew I really put in my best.
He told me one can not appreciate success if one has never failed.