For some, everytime they are asked to do some math, they’d immediately give you that ‘yeeck’ face. Yes, it’s true that mathematics is a hard subject, especially if you haven’t learned to love it on your foundational years. But, the truth is mathematics is worth it. That’s why as part of the 30-day blog challenge, this is the answer to the question What is your favorite subject? I guess the answer is obvious. So, this post is all about the why.

What is your favorite subject?

Inspiring, challenging and beautiful – that’s how I perceive Mathematics. Although the process of problem solving can be nerve-wrecking causing me a lot of headaches, the idea of entering into the process and the idea of successfully getting out put a smile on my face – a different kind of excitement.

“Solving a problem for which you know there’s an answer is like climbing a mountain with a guide, along a trail someone else has laid. In mathematics, the truth is somewhere out there in a place no one knows, beyond all the beaten paths. And it’s not always at the top of the mountain. It might be in a crack on the smoothest cliff or somewhere deep in the valley.”

Yoko Ogawa, The Housekeeper and the Professor

According to Alan Smith, there are two kinds of people in the world:

• FIRST. The first kind is the person who is comfy with numbers – the one who can perform computations and enjoys doing it.
• SECOND. The second is the person who can’t.

However, the love of Mathematics is not only reserved for those who can execute it. It also belongs to those who struggle with solving equations and memorizing formulas, but still find it beautiful. It’s not only limited to mathematics taught at school. In fact, it is everywhere. Through mathematics, we were able to prove that the Earth is not flat, to know how fast should a vehicle run before hitting a brake so as not to hit any on the road, to create algorithms that we could use in our everyday lives, and not even to mention, to know how fast this global pandemic Covid-19 is spreading all over the world. How is that not extraordinarily inspiring – to learn to love Mathematics.

It’s more than memorizing formulas…

You learn to understand, not to memorize. Stigma –  a lot of students are saying oh, math major? It’s all about memorization. Then, you’ll pass it! Definitely wrong! If you forget the concept of understanding the formulae, you’ll probably ending up in trash. Yes, part of studying is memorization. In fact, you will face a whole bunch of formulae you are going to memorize. But, when the exam day comes, you are not tasked to list all those formulae on paper. Instead, you will be given situations with problems to solve, and if you don’t understand the formulae you memorize, you wouldn’t be able to pick up the right one from your repository. If you picked the wrong one to apply, you’ll get the wrong answer or you’ll have an empty space.

How does it apply in life?

Learning the foundations of math so you can apply them when you face situations also equates to learning the basic foundations (values and principles) in life so you can apply them in your everyday situations. And what I love the most about math is the feeling of accomplishment once you get it right. Can you still remember the feeling when you first learn how to swim? If you still do, then that same feeling can be felt when you solve a difficult math problem. It may take you hours, or days, or even weeks, but once you get it right at the end, it will be worth it. You will then have the confidence and it will surely uplift you.

I also love Psychology

Also, later in life, I developed interest in psychology. I am quite observant with people. Understanding their behavior, actions, thinking and perspectives is quite interesting. It tells me a lot about them. Meeting various people with different personalities is inevitable; and psychology is the one who teaches me how to respond to them. Quite interesting, right?

This post is part of 30-day blog challenge below.

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Cha Esper

Cha of Little Misadvencha is a Filipino Civil Engineer, researcher and a fur mom. She came from General Santos City and finds that everything in life teaches her a lesson. She is inspired to write about and out of her experiences, but later found out that it was her experiences that actually inspire her.

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