“At least a distance of 100 miles away!”
“What’s the necessity to learn this?”
Those are a few of the reactions and lines I have experienced the majority of the time having introduced myself as the Math teacher. Math teachers out there, a few of you might resonate with my experience. While I do understand the aversion of many towards Mathematics, I would be thankful to my teachers and mother to draw my liking towards this magnificent subject. School days, sleepless nights, an urge to excel in my calculations, and problem-solving skills in all my exams; that was the beginning.
The legend Albert Einstein once quoted- Pure mathematics is, in its way, the poetry of logical ideas. Wow! What a wonderful thought isn’t it? I never took any great leaps to pursue greater things with this interest. Neither did I have exceptional ideas and thoughts for the same apart from my school and college learnings. But yes, I enjoyed the simple thought that irrespective of one liking or disliking it, how Math or rather logical skills play a vital role in each of our lives. Right from a roadside vendor to playing board games to a homemaker to a musician to a gymnast or even to the greatest scientist, every single person uses Math.
Never did I realize that I would be one of those to join the race to complete my post-graduation in Computer Science. It was too late until I found out that my interest never lied in the route of machines and programming. When I look back, they were all learnings that I earned without passion. Would that mean I continue on the same path? I chose not to. Did that mean my passion lied in Mathematics? Not at all. So much to my amusement I clearly understood much later that I was passionate about Art but there lied a hidden love for Mathematics.
Art is yet another field that I’m the most passionate about. Being an aspiring artist, Math excited me all the more when I learnt the skills to correlate Math with Art. Teaching felt a lot more satisfying with such exciting strategies and that was reflecting in my students as well. I love the sutras that Vedic math teaches us. More than that the discipline that this field brings into an individual amazed me the most. Let me give you a small example over here. Rangoli, an ancient Indian art that has formed a culture in most parts of India is widely connected with Math. Giving exposure to this culture helps students understand concepts like patterns, shapes, and their complexities differently.
I owe a lot to this subject for the kind of person it has shaped me into. The list is long but to mention a few, they are discipline, organizational skills, practical approach, patience, perseverance, problem-solving attitude, the right procedure to doing things, and so on. Bearing that in mind, here I have a tiny bit of advice to all those Math haters around me, all the more to my young minds out there- Math is a Majestic Art that needs to be acquired, developed, and nurtured with practice and perseverance. For me, It is like acquiring a taste for Sushi in Japanese cuisine….:) The more you delve into it, the more you explore the beautiful side of it which would evolve you. Do not ever miss that chance. Needless to say that I love eating Sushi today.
While my mind is still mirthful on these beautiful and powerful human creations, let me conclude with a quote-Math may not teach me how to add love or subtract hate but it gives me hope that every problem has a solution.
