Diary Entry

Dear Diary,

Today, something happened at school, something wonderful. Listen:

I was walking aimlessly in the playground during recess, worrying about my grade in my most recent math test, a B-. My parents, both doctors, expected me to get straight-A grades; my sister, studying in IIT, expected the same of me. I decided to go back inside the building and study; I was wasting my time here.

I paused just before our classroom door, observing a silver plaque that I had never noticed before. It bore a quote by Mahatma Gandhi: "I have nothing new to teach the world. Peace and non-violence are as old as the hills."

And, I thought, truth and non-violence were advocated in the Bible, and truth and non-violence combined to form peace, which gave happiness, didn't it? Mahatma Gandhi was truthful and non-violent, and thus peaceful, and probabaly happy.

Still deep in thought, I enetered the classroom..

And saw Jack standing up from my desk and stuffing something into his back pocket.

Pushing him roughly aside, I sat down at my chair and rummaged through my desk; I found that my 1990 German coin was missing, one of the most valuable coins in my whole collection, which I had brough to school to taunt Jack, the only other coin-collector in my class. And now Jack's hand was on my precious coin, dirtying it by his very touch!

I got up to launch myself at Jack, to pull out his hair if necassary, then remembered "Truth+non-violence = peace" and sat back down.

"Afraid?" mocked Jack, surprised at my retreat. "No," I replied, reseating myself. "Violence is quite unnecassary, Jack." "Violence is quite unnecassary, Jack?" he repeated, bemused, bursting with laughter. "This from the girl who was given detention last week for screaming in the library?"

"Jack," I said loftily "It's not worth arguing over something that you'll surely return, is it?" "Oh, I'll return it, will I?" asked Jack, grinning. "I don't think so" he said, pulling a coin out of his pocket, holding it up briefly to show me, then cocking his hand, pointing it at the window.

I hesitated, then saw sense. Jack would never throw it out of the window, it was too precious. I shifted my eyes from his almost-shut hand to his eyes. He shrugged, cocked his arm further, and threw the coin out of the window!

Then, Diary, I saw red. I got up, ready to pummel his until he agreed to search for my coin in the vast expanse of the school garden, populated with thick bushes and lush grass and probably many rowdy boys as well.

Then I reminded myself that it was all my fault. If I'd just slapped him first, atleast I would have gotten back the coin, albeit with a call to my parents and detention.

Jack looked astounded at the fact that I had, slowly (and almost unconsciously) lowered myself back into my chair. He sat down too, a smile spreading across his face. He reached a hand into his pocket and pulled out another coin, holding it up for me to see. Then the first coin must have been a normal one!

And, Diary, guess what, Mom and Dad didn't scold me for my mark, they merely told me to work harder, and Sarah, my dear sister, offered to coach me in math!