24TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (A)

So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart.

Mt 18:21-35

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I DON'T EXACTLY REMEMBER WHERE I GOT THIS TOUCHING STORY. IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN FROM READER'S DIGEST.

The incessant drizzle outside the Ming Yang Correctional High School makes the reception room even more cold and empty. Lin Meiyun sits and waits at one end of a long table. 

The silence in the room of the juvenile detention centre in Taiwan is amplified by the sound of her heartbeat. Lin tells herself, “Calm down. No matter what happens, don’t get angry.” At last, the door opens. A teenage boy, escorted by a counsellor, appears. His name is Yang. The scrawny little boy she saw years ago has grown into a tall, young man. The honest and bashful look on his face reminds her of her only son, Teng De.

Looking at the boy in front of her, tears well up in Lin’s eyes. This is the person who had killed her son three years ago, stabbing him in the chest with a knife. No words are exchanged as they stare at each other in silence, their emotions frozen in the frigid air.

Breaking the silence, Yang stammers, “Mrs You,” referring to Lin’s married name. With tears streaming down his face, he continues, “Can I hug you?”

Lin nods. Yang hugs her tightly as pent up emotions give way to uncontrollable sobbing. “I’m sorry. I was wrong. I am sorry,” Yang says over and over again. His words unlock the chains of hatred and misery that have bound Lin’s heart for so long. At that very moment, her shackled soul is set free.

It was difficult for Lin to give up her need for revenge. She wanted Yang and his family dead. She even started stalking his parents. That was when she saw Yang’s mother selling magnolias amidst the bustling traffic. His father, whose hand had been amputated in a car accident, was using his good arm to sell flowers, receive money and return change. In that moment, Lin felt empathy – Yang’s parents were as poor as she was. She remembered similar hardships when her husband had been bedridden for a long period of time. Back then, Lin held down two jobs washing dishes and cars to make a living. She also grew vegetables to sustain the family.

Yang’s parents were victims of circumstance, just like her. They were reduced to selling flowers by the road to pay the court-ordered compensation. Looking at them from across the street, Lin’s anger diminished.

“Even if I were to kill [Yang], it wouldn’t bring back my son. And my hatred would cause another family to suffer.” Lin thought to herself, “If my son were the one who committed the mistake, wouldn’t I also hope for forgiveness?”