A Spine-Tingling Realization
Many years ago, my dad was a college student who needed to pass a certain math class as a requirement for his computer science major. He failed this class twice before he had the brilliant idea of asking his girlfriend (my mom), a math major, for help. She agreed and told him to bring his homework, some paper, and his textbook.
After discussing the assignment for a few minutes, my mom opened the textbook to see what it said on the subject. When she did so, the spine made a creaking noise, like it was stiff.
Mom: “. . . Have you ever actually OPENED this thing before?”
Dad: “No. Should I have?”
Mom: “You failed this class twice, and you’ve never opened the textbook?!”
Dad: “Who reads the textbook?!”
Mom: “EVERYONE!”
He did pass the class. With the absolute minimum non-failing grade. To this day, he’s pretty sure the professor only passed him because they were sick of seeing him. He now has a successful career in tech.
