Math

What I love about math is
It’s logical.
It makes sense.
There’s a right and a wrong answer,
There’s logic and proofs,
There is control.
Give me a sheet of problems,
A list of numbers,
Or an equation of variables,
Plus a few hours
Multiplied by a few days,
And I’ll find the answers.
I may be slow at math, but
give me enough time to torture the numbers,
And I’ll get them to confess anything.

What I love about math is
The numbers.
They add up nicely,
But even better,
They subtract perfectly.
They shrink,
And shrink,
And shrink,
Until even zero seems a big number
Because at least zero is a complete circle.

What I love about math is
That the numbers represent our complex rules
In just a few pen strokes.
Girls are told to look like the number 8,
Big butt,
Big boobs,
But skinny waist.
Men are told to look like the number 7,
Tall and broad shouldered at the top,
Half of the shape of a triangle,
The strongest shape on earth.
I am told to look like a 2.
Even and not too big,
With steady feet,
And a body curled in an almost question mark,
To mark all my curiosities.
But lately…
I look more like a 1.

What I love about math is
The ratios.
A thousand to two thousand
Is the same as
The ratio 1:2
Or 50%
So when they ask how I am,
I am 50% better.

What I love about math is
The magic.
Anything can turn into a number.
A sandwich turns into 373,
An orange to 47,
And I’ll turn to 138.
To 134
To 122
And finally 115.2.

I love math,
But there are still things I hate.

What I hate about math is
Pi.
3.14159265359…
The number drags on
Just like the calories in a real pie.

What I hate about math is
The word problems.
Who has hundreds of apples?
I could only ever have one.

There are parts about math that I hate,
But I still love math.
And I may be slow,
But give me enough time to torture the numbers,
And they’ll confess anything.

Give me enough time to torture myself
And I’ll confess I need help.
But no one will hear,
Because i is imaginary.