My Dharma Teacher Plays Video Games

"The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas."

--Linus Pauling

My son Miles loves math. MY son. Me, the woman who got a D- in high school geometry even after cheating on most of the tests. I can't even cheat well in math, for god's sake, and yet I bore a son who is in an after school math group ... for FUN. When he was in first grade he asked his teacher to explain square roots to him. How had he even heard of square roots in first grade? If I did not have fond memories of laboring and delivering that nine pound baby boy, I would call for a DNA test to prove maternity. 

Miles has an unquenchable curiosity about many things, not just math. He is currently reading Principles of Geology, by Charles Lyell (friend of Charles Darwin) for his independent reading book. Just today he explained to me how Lyell's work influenced Darwin. He also asked me if he could make a flame thrower out of hairspray, and told me he needed sheet metal and heat proof bricks to build a furnace so he could make glass. (It's a relief when he asks if he can make chocolate chip cookies.) Miles is always thinking. If you look closely you can almost see the gears turning inside his head. 

While he may have the mind of a scientist, Miles has the soul of an artist. He paints beautiful watercolors, rich with the textures of the natural world: Grass, stone, water. He draws intricate drawings of machines he'd like to invent, with lots of gears and other moving parts. A tactile kind of guy, Miles is unable to resist touching things in stores and other people's homes. But when he's walking through an art museum he clasps his hands firmly behind his back to help himself resist the temptation to reach out and touch the rich layers of paint on an Impressionist painting or the curve of stone on a sculpture. None the less, there always seems to be a security guard lurking nearby when we're in a museum.

Some time back I spent an afternoon cleaning Miles' room. It took a few hours. That night when I went to bed I found a seashell on my nightstand with a note inside thanking me for making his room so nice.  On more than one occasion he's told me he had "too much money" and would like to donate it. He's bought flocks of chicks from Heifer International, an acre of rain forest from The Nature Conservancy, and made a donation to support our church's warming shelters for homeless men and women, all with saved allowance and birthday money. He has also eagerly helped prepare broccoli cheese casserole for the guests of the warming shelter and graciously served them their evening meal. He said it made him "appreciate being in the middle class."

I realize I am bragging about my son here. But I can't help it. Not only do I love Miles, I admire him. I learn from him every day. He is a walking encyclopedia of scientific knowledge, but facts are not the most important thing he gives me. Miles shows me how amazing the world is when you approach it with curiosity and wonder. He reminds me to ask questions and explore big ideas. He shows me that science, art and religion can share a happy coexistence, like good roommates. And, most of all, he teaches me that a strong mind coupled with a big heart can change the world, everyday, with both grand and humble actions. 

... But math?