Solving problems in long form

Understanding people can be as difficult as solving
 complex equations.


Growing up, I was a bit of a nerd.  I mean, no one dared call me that to my face, I was still quite athletic and quick with the hands.  Anyway, I excelled at some odd subjects "for a girl", Math and Science.  I could often solve long math problems in my head.  (I still do this when shopping with my sister and mama! ha! I can tell you how much you will pay with whatever % off within a few seconds...)

(Keep reading for the story of former Louisville stand out and NBA player, Clifford Rozier)


Anyway, solving math problems in long form always bothered me.  I could do it in my head, why
 waste all of that time? I remember when I took the short route in pre-cal and ended up forgetting to add + C to the end of my responses...which meant I missed the answers...all because of that darn + C.  Thank goodness I had aced all of my other work (rarely missing anything...).  My GPA would have taken an L, but for the grace and mercy of my math teacher, Mr. Kistler. 

Now that I am (much) older, than the 17 year old in pre-Cal, I realize why you have to solve problems in long form sometimes.   If you rush to an answer too quickly, you may end up missing something and therefore failing in the end.

How often do you jump to conclusions?  You may notice something and then start putting two and two together in your head, without ever asking one single question.  Granted, at times it is good to go with your intuition.  But sometimes intuition is nothing more than negative thoughts and past bad dealings swimming around in your head.  You use your own past to judge others without their input.

I hope she doesn't mind my posting it, but today this lady made a statement that was so very true.  "Just goes to show, you never know what someone is going through."- L.D.


Clifford Rozier at Louisville
Photo from http://www.bleacherreport.com/
 Her statement was in response to an article I posted about Clifford Rozier, a 1990s star college athlete and NBA player.  I found the article after someone made a comment about Mr. Rozier getting mad about his playing time at UNC and leaving to go to Louisville.  The person wondered if he had become a "big time star...", insinuating that his arrogance led to his downfall.  I remembered watching Mr. Rozier play at Louisville (when I was like eleven or twelve), but had no idea he began college at my beloved university. 

In the article, I learned that Mr. Rozier suffers from schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder.  At one time he jumped off a two story building, at the bequest of the voices he heard.  At another, he attempted to self-medicate with crack cocaine.  He now lives in a half-way house in Florida where he takes medication to calm him and stave off the voices he hears.  In this article, His most important rebound, Mr. Rozier discusses his life from before becoming a star athlete to after being diagnosed.

Maybe Mr. Rozier was arrogant.  Maybe that arrogance led to his poor play and short stint in the NBA.  Or maybe his arrogance was a by-product of his mental illnesses.  And maybe his mental illnesses instigated his arrogance.  And maybe all of that led to him having a hard time in the NBA, battling drug addiction, and finally finding help for his underlying issues.

Anyway...I know that was a long way of getting to my point.  But my point is...how often do you consider where a person is coming from, before judging where they currently are?  Do you take time to get to know a person, so that you can understand why an answer he or she gives may NOT be something you've heard before?

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