- Dad, what’s the smallest thing in the world?
- A human life, my love. You barely begin - and you’re already old.
- Huh? But our physics teacher said it’s the electron... And what’s the longest thing in the world?
- Human life again. Long enough to make so many mistakes, your great-grandchildren may still be cleaning up after you.
- That’s not what our geography teacher said! She claimed it’s the Equator. Was she wrong?

What’s the smallest thing in the world?
Inspired by A. Shchyogolev

Okay, Dad, what’s the most precious thing?
- Human life.
- Ah, we talked about that in literature class! So what’s the cheapest thing then?
- Human life too, sweetheart. Sometimes it’s traded for a handful of coins… sometimes given away for nothing at all.
- Our history teacher said it was slave labor. Maybe you forgot?

Never mind. What’s the hardest theorem you know?
- Human life, son. Every single day, from morning till night, we try to prove something - to ourselves, or to others.
- No way! Our math teacher said it’s Fermat’s Last Theorem. She even showed us the proof!

You’re funny, Dad. Okay, do you know what the simplest cell is?
- Human life. No bars, no locks, no guards… and yet, sometimes, no way out.
- I meant biology! It’s in the book!

What about this: who’s the smartest person ever?
- The smartest is always the one yet to be born.
- And the strongest?
- The one who speaks the language of those he disagrees with.
- And who’s the most beautiful?
- The one who never looks in the mirror.
- And the kindest? The one who feels sorry for everyone?
- No, my dear. The kindest is the one who doesn’t pity herself.

My reflection

I was charmed by this innocent exchange between father and son.
It holds a deep truth - not the factual kind you find in textbooks, but the kind that lingers in your heart and grows more real over time.

It’s charming how this piece is playing with life’s paradoxes:

Life is short - but long enough to change everything.
It’s priceless - and yet often treated as disposable.
Proving your worth is both the simplest and hardest thing we do.
And strength, beauty, and kindness aren’t what we’re taught they are - but something subtler, quieter, and far more lasting.

It feels real.
And it touches me - because I recognize myself in it.