Life Is Like Algebra: Every Negative Can Be Turned into a Positive If We Solve the Problem

By Roland J. Commack

For anyone reading this book, I want you to know that in no way form or fashion is it professionally written since I am not a professional writer. In fact, this is my first book ever. What I hope you get out of this book is all me. In addition, a big part that comes along with me is my heart.

You will find sections of this book written in elementary type words; words that every one of all ages who can read should be able to understand. It is also easy for those unable to read where someone else is reading it to them to comprehend and for those that English may not be their first, second, or maybe even third language.

It is a very different, original, and unique book. I hope that all my readers enjoy my story. Thank you for taking the time to read it.

This book is about my life surrounded with Bible scriptures that tie into my life story. Throughout the chapters of this book, where I mention the sun of God, Jesus Christ, it is not an error or misspelling. I have intentionally spelled it this way. You will get a clearer understanding at the end of the book in the segment called I Believe.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Sep 2, 2015
• ISBN: 9781503575851

Book preview

Life Is Like Algebra

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Every Negative Can Be Turned into

a Positive if We Solve the Problem

Roland J. Commack

Copyright © 2015 by Roland J. Commack.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. [Biblica]

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 06/08/2015

Xlibris

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CONTENTS

Foreword

My Prayer

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1 Heading to the City of Angels

Chapter 2 Cousin Beverly

Chapter 3 That Four-Letter Word: Work!

Chapter 4 New Year’s Eve, 1986

Chapter 5 LA Gang Territory

Chapter 6 The Night that Changed My Life

Chapter 7 Fear Not, for I Am with You

Chapter 8 A Mother’s Love for Her Son

Chapter 9 A Halo and a ROHO Bed

Chapter 10 You Will Never Walk Again

Chapter 11 Rehab Taught Me Diversity

Chapter 12 Learning to Live the Disabled Life

Chapter 13 Back Home to Kansas City

Chapter 14 Gifts from God: My Son and a Guardian Angel

Chapter 15 Wheelchair Accessible

Chapter 16 Saying Good-bye to My Father

Chapter 17 Saying Good-bye to a Guardian Angel

Chapter 18 The Road to Independence

Chapter 19 Big Brother Roland

Chapter 20 Back to School at the Fifth-Grade Level

Chapter 21 Guardian Angels at School

Chapter 22 Guardian Angels Help Me Walk

Chapter 23 The Stroke

Chapter 24 No Light, No Sunshine, No Hope

Chapter 25 My Mom, One More Guardian Angel

Chapter 26 In and Out of Hospitals

Chapter 27 Stroke No. 2, the TIA

Chapter 28 A Child of God

Chapter 29 Mind versus Body

Chapter 30 Ambulance Ride to a Concussion

Chapter 31 Never Ask Why

I Believe

This Is Just What I Believe

Lord God, I Pray

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To the true authors: God, his son Jesus Christ, and the spirit that they put within me.

• To my earthly father, Roosevelt H. Commack Sr., who gave his life for his kids to have an opportunity to live.

• To the woman of my life, my mother, JoAnn Commack, who endured the pain of childbirth to give me life, enabling me to fulfill the purposes that I was put on earth for.

• To my only begotten son, Roland D. Commack, who gave me a reason to live—for without that reason, I would not be here today.

This book would not have been possible without any of the people I mentioned. In fact, there are so many people I need to thank and should that I could write a whole book on the matter. Please know that if I did not mention your name, in my heart, I thank you just as much. I hope you know I thank and love each one of you sincerely.

FOREWORD

F or anyone reading this book, I want you to know that in no way, form, or fashion is it professionally written since I am not a professional writer. In fact, this is my first book ever. What I hope you get out of this book is all me. In addition, a big part that comes along with me is my heart.

You will find sections of this book written in elementary-type words, words that everyone of all ages who can read should be able to understand. It is also easy for those unable to read, where someone else is reading it to them to comprehend, and for those that English may not be their first, second, or maybe even third language.

It is a very different, original, and unique book. I hope that all my readers enjoy my story. Thank you for taking the time to read it.

This book is about my life surrounded with Bible scriptures that tie into my life story. Throughout the chapters of this book where I mention the Sun of God, Jesus Christ, it is not an error or misspelling—I have intentionally spelled it this way. You will get a clearer understanding at the end of the book, in the segment I Believe.

In the poem at the end of my story, Lord God, I Pray, I confess my sins to God, asking him to forgive me and asking all those that I may have hurt in any way in my life to forgive me. I am asking him to give me another chance at life and thanking him for doing it.

In life, there are many negatives but so many more positives. My life is an example; if you have the patience, the faith, and the will that give you the hope to solve the problem, you can turn a negative into a positive.

My expectation is that my story will motivate and inspire others to pass on faith to those who don’t live by faith. That they will pass on hope to those who don’t live by or have hope—to be able to share faith.

Throughout the chapters of the book, I’ll show you where I failed. However, after fifteen years confined to a wheelchair, I rose again. It was only to walk with the assistance of a walker, but I walked.

Through it all, I thanked God because I believe firmly that he gives his hardest challenges to his strongest soldiers. In addition, he would give no one anything that he or she cannot bear.

So many types of disabilities exist today, from mental to physical. People are afflicted with many different problems. There is cancer, kidney problems, and heart conditions. There are people who are blind, some with no limbs, and some that cannot speak or hear. It seems everyone has some type of disability.

The one thing that I learned is never to ask why because God usually has a reason for everything we go through, whether it’s multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, HIV, AIDS, ADHD, or Down’s syndrome. The list is just unending.

I believe everything happens for a reason. Oftentimes when something negative happens in our lives, we do not know it really is for a positive reason. We look at it as a negative not knowing what is around the corner. Things could be so much worse.

I thank God for saving my life in 1987. If it were not for the wheelchair that became my shield of protection, this book wouldn’t have been written. God gave me another chance at life. My body died, but my spirit lived on in the same body, and it still lives on. I look at what happened to me, and I think to myself, Wow, I have been really blessed because I know I have done a lot of negative things. Nevertheless, as I wrote this book, I know that God was blessing me all along, giving me all the things I asked for that I needed, never what I wanted. However, even with all these blessings and possessions he gave me, I realized that I never really got to enjoy any of it.

All along, I was doing time within my body, just watching life go by me. Sometimes life can imprison us behind a wall; in my case, that prison was within my body, which is hard because it