The president was visiting a primary school and sat in on a classroom discussion about vocabulary.
The teacher asked if the president would like to lead a discussion on the word “tragedy.”
The president agreed and asked the class, “Can anyone give me an example of a tragedy?”
A boy stood up and said, “If my best friend was playing in the street and got hit by a car, that would be a tragedy.”
“No,” said the president , “that would be an accident.”
A girl raised her hand and said, “If a school bus full of kids went off a cliff, that would be a tragedy.”
“I’m afraid not,” said the president . “That would be a terrible loss.”
The room went quiet. Eventually, little Johnny at the back raised his hand.
“In my opinion,” he said, “if a plane carrying you and your entire department was hit by a stray missile and exploded, that would be a tragedy.”
The official looked surprised. “Why do you think that would be a tragedy?”
“Well,” Johnny replied, “it wouldn’t be an accident, and it sure wouldn’t be a great loss.”
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