My niece, Marili, was telling me and my other niece, Mireya, how challenging her college geology class has been. I was like, “geology?” And my eyes lit up.

Of course, when I was Marili’s age, I couldn’t care less about the sciences. I guess I’m trying to make up for lost years now. I’ve become a research buff on history, media, religion, literature, and I’m even open to the earth sciences, and so I thought I was clever when I blurted out, “geology rocks!”

Marili and Mireya burst out laughing. Marili thought it was cute. But Mireya, who is not as science-challenged as us, rolled her eyes and said, “Helen, I expected something more intelligent than that from you!”

I guess that was a compliment. I mean, I do pride myself as being a veteran journalist who avoids clichés like the plague. Oops, there’s a cliché.

To my credit, though, I’m no Einstein or Sir Isaac Newton. This has become painfully obvious as I prepare to take the New Mexico Teacher’s Assessment test this weekend. I literally used to cry when I did my college algebra, a class I barely passed. But if knowing how to solve for “x” makes me a better English teacher, then I resolve to solve. However, algebra doesn’t rock like geology.

Helena Rodriguez is a freelance writer. Contact her at: Helena-Rodriguez@hotmail.com