“An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.” M K Gandhi. A very important quote, I believe, as I learned that winter day of November.
   The wind gnawed at my skin as I trudged strenuously through slush to the lonely school I was to teach in. It was surrounded by myriads of snow in all directions, save for a forest of pine trees to the south.
  The school was not one of those rather modern and tech-based ones, but it looked like how a school should have if it was made in 1856, which, indeed, was the year it was founded. One of the wealthy Britishmen at that time had revealed the obvious necessity for adequate Western education. It was the most striking object of this frozen land as it was one of the only remarkable structures to actually gaze at.
  I pushed through the door, to warm my blood with a warm breeze from a central heating system. It almost seemed to me that the heating was gently chiding me for forgetting one of the pleasures of teaching at a school that was usually gloomy and quiet. I clambered up the stairs to the class I was to teach in, a small one nestled in a corner of the floor. The pulling open of this door was like to a portal to a warm, snug world where delighted children ran, jumped, and played. It was the zero period, a half-an-hour free time before the flight of studies.
  The children were, obviously, hyperactive and spent this half-an-hour teasing, yelling, and playfully jostling each other. It was the natural forgiving nature of these delightful children that always entertained, enthralled, and warmed my heart that had known excruciating amounts of pain; not physical, but mental, especially pressure. This batch of children was remarkably innocent and their perspective of the world was restricted to the knowledge of great leaders and how they transformed the world from a cruel unjustified prison to a wonderful, liberalized heaven-on-earth. No, they were not yet of age to know what deep, dark secrets the world had ever so carefully concealed within its surface; secrets that only exist in memories and videos like 26/11, 9/11, the German Bakery Blast, etc. they believed in the simple idea that if someone committed a crime, they would instantly regret on it and apologize.
  I watched, with interest sizzling inside my soul, as a young boy, Omar, pushed Mary, a young girl, with a bit too much zeal, finally resulting in toppling her over. There was no fury in Mary’s expression, just a feeling somewhat like, ”O Romeo, what hast thou done?” Omar’s face, however, was pure shock and regret. He immediately helped her up, and after apologizing profusely, he started playfully teasing her.
  How nice it would be if the world was how the children imagined it to be! A world packed with kind, affectionate people like Mother Teresa; A world filled with friendliness and forgiving nature; a world that learns from its previous blunders. Yes, it would be as if it were paradise on Earth; A planet that corresponds with the needs of its inhabitants. Why, if someone were to convert the Earth to a planet like this, I wouldn’t be surprised if he were written down in history as “The Second Messiah.”
Many say that the word “sorry” may lose its meaning if it is used in a normal conversation so often. I can say, confidently, that this arbritary idea is merely a myth. Who would know better than I? As a teacher, I have studied children behavior for the past years, and I know that these children genuinely say this powerful word and do not render it meaningless like some elder children do.
Yes, simple words like “sorry” and “I forgive you” are among the strongest words in this expansive language we call English, and also one of the only words that may change the face of Earth one day.