Over Shabbos I was thinking about my grand-children finishing the school term this coming week and I remembered that Moshe K was taking Geometry in his Freshman year in H.S. I, too, took Geometry in RJJ when I was 14 years old. That course was given over the course (pun) of a whole year: Half ,(Geometry I ), in the Spring Term, and the other Half ,(Geometry II), in the Fall Term.
For some reason I could not “CHAP” the concepts of Geometry during that first Term. I remember getting a very low mark on my Report Card that Term, for Geometry, (55 or 60). Then I went to Camp Aguda for the summer. I did NOT study or take make-up tests or anything else. In fact, I don’t think I even thought about Geometry and my problems with it, the entire summer.
Yet, when I came back to School in the Fall, and took Geometry II, it was suddenly easy for me. I “CHAPPED”the concepts, and everything went very smoothly that Term. I got a 96 in Geometry II. To this day I cannot explain what happened in my head, while in Camp that summer, but it certainly happened..
I am telling this story to encourage any of my grand-children who might be having problems in School , to forget about those problems over the Summer. You would be surprised how problems do not re-surface after a summer recess. Just rely on your good looks and your “Gerstner Brain” and everything will turn out fine.
And, speaking of Geometry, I’m sure you all heard of, and know, “THE PYTHAGOREAN PROPOSITION” a/k/a “ THE PYTHAGOREAN THEOREM”
For those that don’t know; Pythagoras was an ancient Greek Mathematician. He came up with a Proposition or Theorem, which, by definition, is like a theory that has to be proven. His Proposition involved a Right Triangle and his theory was :
“THE SQUARE OF THE HYPOTENUSE (of a right triangle), IS EQUAL TO THE SUM OF THE SQUARES OF THE OTHER TWO SIDES.
It took an Indian Chief , named “SHORTCAKE”, (more about him later), to finally prove that Proposition. It happened like this:
SHORTCAKE had three (3) SQUAWS ,(wives),. The first SQUAW always slept on a Bear Skin, or Hide; the second SQUAW always slept on an Elk Hide, and the 3d SQUAW always slept on an Hippopotamus Hide.
Over the course of time, the Squaw that slept on the Bear Hide gave birth to a baby boy. That same year, the Squaw that slept on the Elk Hide gave birth to a baby boy also. Both these Squaws looked down on the Squaw that slept on the Hippopotamus Hide, as not being their equal, and somehow beneath them, because she had nothing.
However, early the next year, the Squaw that slept on the Hippopotamus Hide gave birth to TWIN BOYS. As such, she not only became the favorite wife of Shortcake, she also PROVED that:
“THE SQUAW OF THE HIPPOPOTAMUS IS EQUAL TO THE SONS OF THE SQUAWS OF THE OTHER TWO HIDES.”
Q.E.D. (“Quod Erat Demonstradum”) - ( Look it up )-
Love to all, ZAIDA