A Self-Description
Hello and Welcome. Most of my web page has been devoted to information
about my professional development as a mathematics educator. This part of
my home page is designed to give you some insight as
to who I am
on a personal level. In case you were wondering, that's a picture of me
to the right.
Where do I begin? I think that, first and foremost, I want people to know
that I'm a Christian. I believe, without a doubt, that Jesus Christ is my
personal savior, provider and protector, and without him, I am nothing.
This is not a statement that I make lightly. I consider myself to be a well-educated
man; one that tries to make careful and intelligent decisions, and one that
believes in living a truthful life. I'd like to say that I arrived at this
conclusion through personal reasoning, but I didn't. This is knowledge that
was given to me when I accepted Jesus into my life.
The question of the existence of God is probably one of the greatest philosophical
questions of all time. For some fortunate people this has never been issue;
they have always known of the existence of God. But, for many of us, for
one reason or another, we have had to struggle with this question. Some
of us have tried to answer this question through rational argument and the
use of logic, but unfortunately, the arguments on either side have their
flaws. I believe that no one will ever be able to argue another person into
believing in God, and likewise, if you know God and Jesus on a personal
basis, no one can ever argue you out of believing in them. No, to me, the
existence of God is a spiritual question not an intellectual one.
Anyhow, it took me a long time to realize that I was spiritually empty.
Once I discovered this, I took a good look at religion and realized that
if Jesus Christ was reality, then Christianity would be the most beautiful
thing to be a part of. However, before I could claim I was Christian, I
had to be absolutely certain that I sincerely believed that Jesus is Lord.
I began to search in earnest for God. You know, what they say is true; if
you look for God, you'll find him. It may take longer than you think, but
eventually, God and Jesus will give you the opportunity to accept their
gift of salvation. It may happen at any time and in a place that you would
never expect. For me, I met God and Jesus in the middle of a dirt street
in a run down, back-country, Mexican village (this is an interesting story
in and of itself). Now, I can't say what will happen when you accept this
gift, sometimes there are tears, sometimes there is overwhelming joy, and
sometimes there is no emotion at all. But if you truly and sincerely accept
the gift, you will know that your life has been permanently changed. It
took me a long time to accept Jesus into my life, but when I did, it was
the best day of my life. I must admit that this is a relatively new development
in my life, and so I have a lot to learn. I can't claim that I live a perfect
Christian life, but I want to. I want to put Christ first in my life and
glorify him every chance I get. I hope and pray that as Jesus and I walk
along together, he will mold and shape me into a person that is worthy of
being called a Christian.
School has played an important part in my life (actually,
I've never been out of school), so I'll discuss my education next. I graduated
from Edinboro University (class of 1992) with honors and a Bachelor's degree
in Mathematics (Physics minor). After graduating, I went to University of
Memphis (formerly Memphis State) and received my Master's degree in Pure
Mathematics. I am now pursuing my Doctorate in Mathematics Education at
the University of Georgia. More details of my schooling are given in other
areas of my page.
Let's move on to my personal interests. I love sports and I'll try anything
at least once, usually with varying degrees of success. My favorite (you
could call it my addiction) is tennis. I've been playing since I was about
ten years old and I have loved almost every minute of it. Most people would
consider me to be pretty good at the game (for those of you familiar with
some of the rating systems of the game, I'm a 5.0), but that's a relative
sort of thing. I played on my high school and college teams, and I wouldn't
trade those experiences for anything. There is nothing like playing a sport
in college, especially if the team your on is pretty good . Over the last
five or six years, I've had the opportunity to give something back to the
game, by giving lessons at a number of clubs and working at various camps.
It's easy money and a lot of fun. If your interested, I've included a picture
of me taking a swipe at a ball. Other athletic activities I enjoy are swimming,
bike riding, hiking, and golfing. I also lift weights and run, but I really
don't enjoy them very much.
One of the other activities I really enjoy is playing my
guitar (see the picture). I can't say that I'm any good at it, but I certainly
like to try. One of my sisters has said that my singing reminds her of a
bull moose's mating call, but I'm sure that's just a slight exaggeration.
(Actually, I hope it's a large exaggeration). For those of you who play
the guitar, one of the best WWW sites I have found is OLGA: the On-Line
Guitar Archive. You can find a ton of songs here, generally with
words and chords and sometimes even tablature. You should check it out.
As for my musical tastes, if it has an acoustic guitar, I like it. I was
also raised in a small town just south of Erie, PA. This means I cut my
teeth on classic rock. Favorite groups/singers include Van Halen, Styx,
John Cougar Mellencamp, the Eagles, Harry Chapin, and Simon and Garfunkel.
Generally, I'll listen to anything except Rap, Country, and Elevator Music
(This is not classical/art music which I really like. This is essentially
modern POP aranged for orchestras. Unfortunately, it's all probably done
on synthesizer, and what can I say, I think it sucks!)
Finally, I'll close with the goals I have for my life (unless
God changes them, which could happen at any time). Certainly, finishing
my degree is my first goal. I hope that after this I can get some sort of
a mathematics teaching job at liberal arts college or a comprehensive university,
because I do enjoy teaching mathematics and working with college age students.
Hopefully, a position at a university will provide me with enough money
and time to do those things that I enjoy. I'd like to travel and see the
world, even though I can't speak anything other than English. I'm looking
forward to having a family, and all the wonderful things that go along with
it. (Assuming that I'll find a woman who will have me). I'd like to continue
playing and teaching tennis, as well as improving my handicap. All in all,
as long as I'm happy and I glorify God and Jesus Christ, I'll consider my
life a success.
Certainly, there is much more to me than what I have written on this page.
If you have any questions about me or would just like someone to talk to
about God, life, or things in general, send me an e-mail (mfreitag@moe.coe.uga.edu),
I'd love to hear from you.
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