Lloyd's Hate for Math - The Aftermath

It was just another boring one-hour lecture for Lloyd. For him, everything taught in this subject was of no certain relevance to his life. He hated Mr. Ines, his teacher. He hated his classmates who excelled in his class. Most of all, he hated this particular subject--Math!

For now, he was thankful that the class was over and that he had survived another day of tedious tasks. He packed all his belongings absent-mindedly as he said good-bye to a few classmates. He was homeward bound in an instant.

He trudged along his usual path, seeing the same things and the same people, as if today were no different from yesterday. He began to cross the national highway after which he would take a 10-minute jeepney ride and then another 5-minute tricycle ride before he finally got home. This was his usual routine and he somehow found the monotony amusing.

Lloyd was already in the middle of the road and for some reason, he forgot to look towards his right. He took two more steps before finally realizing this but it was too late for him to react -- a speeding car headed straight towards him.

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Lloyd opened his eyes and realized that he must have been unconscious for some time. Seeing clouds everywhere he looked, he found his surroundings very unfamiliar. He took a few steps forward and saw something black and shiny far up ahead. Soon enough, he found himself in front of a huge, black, pearly gate, which appeared to be guarded by an old, bearded man wearing an oversized white robe. The man motioned for him to come closer; Lloyd obligingly followed.

The old man broke their silence first.

"I am Peter, the gatekeeper of Heaven. I shall determine if you will be allowed to enter or not."

To this the boy replied, "Uh... What exactly do you want me to do?"

"I shall ask you three questions. If you are able to answer all of them, you shall be allowed to enter heaven outright. Make one mistake and you shall be sent to purgatory. Not being able to answer all these questions means you will be sent to hell.", the old man answered.

"But I want to go back to earth and be with my loved ones.", Lloyd said.

"Although you are quite foolish for not wanting to enter Heaven but wishing to go back to earth instead, I shall give you that chance. You must answer at least two of my questions so you will be allowed to go back to earth!", the gatekeeper exclaimed.

The boy thought for a moment before finally speaking.

"All right, I’m ready."

The old man did not waste any time.

"In a year's time, how many days do you pray?", Peter asked.

"That's easy, I pray everyday! That's 365 and 1/4 days in a year!", Lloyd exclaimed.

Lloyd began to think. He prayed before and after going to bed, before and after eating meals. How could he possibly determine the exact number of minutes he prayed in a day, much less in a year?

"It’s a very difficult question. No person could possibly answer that!", the boy shouted.

"Ok then let me help you.", a new voice suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

Lloyd was surprised to see an angel suddenly appear beside him.

"I am Anthony, your guardian angel.", the new voice said.

"If you pray an average of 30 minutes a day, what would be the total number of minutes you prayed in a year?", the angel continued.

The boy began to think and think but nothing came out of his mouth.

Again the angel tried to help: "There are 60 minutes in an hour, 24 hours in a day and 365 days in a year."

This time, Lloyd tried to concentrate very hard but much to his dismay, he could not come up with the answer.

"I’m sorry I don’t know the answer.", he finally admitted.

The next two questions were not any easier. But to each of this, the angel provided him with clues. All the necessary data were given to him, it was simply a matter of computation. No matter how much Lloyd thought about the answer, he could not come up with anything.

"Because you were not able to answer any of my questions, you shall be sent to hell!", the gatekeeper stated.

Lloyd cried his heart out, begged, begged more, and begged again, that he be sent anywhere except hell. He began to realize that maybe if he paid more attention to his teacher, he would have been able to answer the old man’s questions.

A mixture of fright and relief was felt by the boy when Peter finally said, "Alright. I shall give you another chance. But make sure that the next time you find yourself standing in front me, you will be able to answer my questions..."

With that, the boy became unconscious. He later found himself in a hospital bed with her mother staring at her while tears flowed out from her eyes.

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It was just another exciting day for Lloyd. For him everything that transpired was certainly relevant to his life. He loved his teachers. He loved his classmates and helped those who fell behind in their subjects. Most of all, he loved his subject--Math!

With less than a month before graduation day, Lloyd felt fulfilled enjoying the last of his high school life. He had already passed several entrance examinations to some of the finest universities in the country. It was only a matter of choosing what he felt suited him. He has planned on taking up BS Math after realizing how important the subject was in his life. He wanted to make Math his life! After all, Math might save him when the time comes.