The Road

"There is no royal road to geometry."
~Euclid (A Greek Mathematician)

This quote is Euclid's response to a question that King Ptolemy asked concerning Geometry. He was asking if there were an easier or shorter way to learn this area of mathematical study. The "royal road" that Euclid was referring to, in his response, was a road that was built by the Persians that became known as the quickest and easiest road for travel. The messengers on that road made famous the motto of the U.S. Postal carriers of today. So, when King Ptolemy asked Euclid if there were an easier way to learn Geometry, Euclid's response meant that there was no quick or easy way to learn.

Geometry, as with so many subjects that are studied in school, don't have a "royal road" to travel on. Today, we have easier ways to travel, easier ways to bank, easier ways to communicate, easier ways to get food, easier ways to work... everything is getting easier and easier. So, it is only natural that a child would want the easy way out of learning. Unfortunately for us all, there are just some things that if you make them any easier, there is something that is lost.

Now, I am not just writing this to make a statement about the difficulties of the modern child, I am also writing this because in a few moments I am going to begin preparing to be a teacher again. Honestly, I would rather carry a sleeper sofa to the third floor of a house (which I have done more than once this summer) than to write lesson plans or come up with course objectives.

I enjoy being a teacher, really I do. I like being around the kids, I actually like teaching them math, and I love teaching the Bible classes, but I do not enjoy all of the preparation stuff. So, I guess in some ways, I am looking for that Royal Road as well. I want to be a good teacher, but I want the quick road to get there.

Anyway, I saw this quote and I felt like it was very fitting for the moment. Not only for my Geometry students, but also for this Geometry teacher.

they're gonna hate me

I have really strong feelings about the proper way to type.

Maybe it is because I had to learn how to type when typing was typing. We didn't have any of that backspacing going on, oh no. If you made a mistake, you had to back it up and align some correct-a-type over the letter to fix it. I am talking old-school typewriters that weighed a hundred pounds a piece.

Now-a-days kids are spoiled with their ability to make a mistake and so quickly go back and fix it. Sometimes the mistakes are even fixed automatically for you! Some of them have even become speed demons of the hunt and peck version of typing. That isn't going to fly with me! No Sir.

This is the product that was just purchased by my school for my keyboarding class. It is called a SpeedSkin Keyboarding Cover. It is a far cry from the cardboard boxes that I single-handedly constructed my first year of teaching. There is not going to be any peeking under the box to look at the fingers with these.

I feel an evil laugh coming on...

easily the most dominant

"I am an historian, I am not a believer, but I must confess as a historian that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is irrevocably the very center of history. Jesus Christ is easily the most dominant figure in all history."
H.G. Wells, British author (1866-1946)

I love it when I hear quotes like this. In the world we live in, quotes like this are so quickly swept under the rug. I could talk about that for a while, in fact, there is a whole plethora of topics that could stem from a quote like this, but the question that comes to my mind is this:

Is Jesus Christ easily the most dominant figure in your life?

saturated

I just completed my commentary on Psalm 23 over at my Let Me Not Wander Blog. I know that Psalm 23 is one of the most quoted Psalms, and possibly one of the most quoted passages in the Bible, but I wanted to did deeper, and spend some time thinking about each of those verses. It was a really interesting chapter, and there was a lot more there than I anticipated.

One thing in particular that really jumped out to me, that I would like to share with you, was the end of verse 5. Most translations end that verse by saying, "... my cup overflows" which is a perfectly good translation of the word. I am no Bible scholar, that I could say otherwise, but when I study a passage, especially for this blog, I will usually go over to the Study Light site and look up the Strong's definitions of some of the key words. So, as normal I looked up the definition of the word overflows, to try to deepen my understanding of this word and this verse.

The Hebrew word that has been translated overflows, means literally saturated. You will have to read Psalm 23, starting with verse 1, to really get how this builds up to this point, but David it is almost like David is just saying, "It's too much! God you are too good! I am saturated with your goodness!"

It is very easy for us to get our eyes off of the big picture. We focus on the valley of the shadow of death, and forget that the Good Shepherd is still with us, and that not only is He leading us through this valley... He led us into this valley.

He knows what is on the other side.

Psalm 23 is a great Psalm, as evidenced by its popularity, but I would like to encourage you to sit down sometime and really read through it. (Also feel free to swing by my other blog and add some commentary of your own.) Check it out.

Moving On

I have successfully completed another stint in the world of the mover. I worked completely locally this time, which means that I didn't get to make quite as much money, but I was able to be at home every night, which was really good. What isn't so good is that I have walked away from this summer with a few more aches and pains than I have had in the past.

On my last day there I had something nice happen. Just a little bit of a complement from my boss. He pulls me in the office, grabs a piece of paper and a pen, and says, "Matt, how much could I offer you to get you to break that contract with that school?"

Now, I would never break a contract, once it was signed, and I would never try to work at a moving company year round again... I have been there, and it wasn't pretty, but it was flattering.

It was also reassuring that all of those aches and pains were worth it. You see, as I go into a new work environment, one of my goals is to be a salt and a light. And I have come to believe that salt and light doesn't come from your mouth and it most definitely doesn't come from trying to impose your morals onto those around you. Salt and light emanates from your actions and your attitudes. And going into a job being the best worker that you can be will shine as a light in this dark world. Especially in a world full of people who want to milk the clock, hide from the boss, and do just enough to get by.

But I am moving on now. I am headed back to school to be a teacher once again. The gears are having to shift in my mind because before I know it, I will be standing in front of a bunch of children. These children will also be in desperate need of salt and light, so the work will go on.

It will be a different kind of work, but the command is still the same, "...work heartily, as if you are working for Christ himself..."

9

He truly is the definition of his name, "asked of God." They told us that we would not have children, but like Hannah, we prayed for a child.

God provided this wonderful gift, more than I ever could have imagined.

Two great philosophers on the wall...

Calvin and Hobbes.

We decided to update the boys' room, and I ambitiously volunteered myself to paint a mural on the wall. (Never done it before, though once I painted a billboard for $100.)

Here are a couple of pictures of the (almost) final version. I still need to do some shading on Hobbes' nose.