In the fantastic novel The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams, the characters search for the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything. The answer they find is somewhat unexpected: 42.
This was the response from my high school English teacher and inspiration, Mr. Larry Tise, when a student would say, “I have a question.” I never understood that until I read Adams’ novel. After that, everything clicked, and my vision of everything in the universe became clear.
Not really.
This has become my pat answer when students come up to me and say, “I have a question.” I emulate Mr. Tise because of the great impact he had on me as a student. His style of teaching is reflected in so many things I do, which is an homage to him. Mr. Tise died of lung cancer a few years ago, but I still have one special lesson I teach every year in creative writing that is blatantly copied from one he used with us as 10th graders.
42 is also what I tend to write in grad party books and yearbooks. When kids ask me math questions, I tell them to figure out a way to make 42 work as the answer. (I’m discovering more and more that today’s junior high math is often above my capabilities. Further proof that the powers that be are pushing math to such a degree that, in trying to get more kids interested, they are pushing them farther away. But I digress…)
So why write about 42? Well, this just happens to be my 42nd column. While there’s nothing remotely special about that, at the very least, it shows my anal side in that I keep track of how many columns I’ve written.
What is truly the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything? Do you really want to know?
I don’t.
While I am a naturally curious person, if I knew everything, life would become boring. It’s awfully fun to foment discussion on wide-ranging topics and to explore deep topics with well-spoken people. If I knew all the answers, those discussions wouldn’t rate so high on my list of interesting parts of life.
Confession: I have a decent-sized ego. I think of myself and portray myself as someone with a high IQ (148, actually). Still, nothing stimulates my mind so much as having someone challenge a thought I have with some rationale that is thought out so well that I begin having second thoughts.
As I’ve wrapped up another year of teaching junior high students, that type of discussion is sometimes hard to find outside the teachers’ lounge. However, I’ve run across a handful of students the last few years who enjoy challenging the way I think.
Why do I enjoy teaching junior high, a job many say certifies you as insane? It’s students like that, the ones who help propel education both for themselves and for others. For it’s not just me they challenge, but those around them, and everyone benefits.
So for me, the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything will remain 42. That seems like a good enough answer and leaves plenty of wiggle room to explore.
Truth be told, I had no idea where this column would go when I started writing it. As I look back over it, that shows the true power of 42. If that’s confusing, the magic is working because you’re thinking! (And if you have a somewhat warped sense of humor, read the book!)
Word of the Week: This week’s word is foment, which means to stir up, as in, “The student tried to foment a revolution against homework, which fizzled when the teacher threatened to up the amount if the student did not get off the desk.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!