THE WRATH OF MATH

Wrath - more than displeasure, annoyance and even anger. We're talking vexation. Math will do that to those lost in its sea of confusion. There are no shades of gray with math solutions - your answer is right or it's just plain wrong. Mess up on step 2 toward a solution, then step 5 is just plain wrong, and so too will be your answer. Twenty spelling words with two misspelled, and you're still flirting with an "A." Asked to identify all countries (51)of Europe from their outlines, and if you miss four or five of them, you've still earned your "A." But math is relentless. Master it and you love its order and the ease with which you can navigate much of math's work. If you fall behind, begin to feel lost, you'd better correct your problems and misunderstandings or else all forms of math beyond very basic arithmetic will start to squeeze you.

What's been written in this intro is a touch in jest, but basically it is true. This poem entitled "The Wrath of Math" is more in jest, and its modified limerick form is perfect for the light humor.

Technically, limericks are five-line narrative poems with specific rhythmical and rhyming patterns. They often focus on somebody fictitious, and the very last line is the kicker - the one that nails down the humor.

"The Wrath of Math" is strictly not a limerick because it has many more than one 5-line stanza. This poem has eight 5-line stanzas. And except for some slight alterations in typical traditional limerick form, these eight stanzas are each of them composed in limerick style.

The poem is about a very smart teen named Sue who's fallen prey to the wrath of math. Can she be helped? What is her fate? Though humorous, as all limericks are supposed to be, there is a part of me that wrote this with a tinge of no humor at all.