Calculating the odds of three birthdays in a row,
My friend multiplies three hundred sixty five, three times.
Not three hundred sixty five times three,
But three hundred sixty five, times three hundred sixty five,
Times three hundred sixty five—which is a very large number.
The bigger the number, the lower the odds,
And the lower the odds, the closer to “a chance in hell,” or a “miracle.”
We cannot take our time; we have to find three birthdays in a row
Immediately, and that’s why we multiply instead of add.
My friend said “three random persons,” but what it really means
Is “three immediate persons.” Random is not quite right.
Charlie, Doris, and Sam in our office are all Leos,
And not only that, July 25, 26, and 27, next to each other;
And these odds are what we were playfully going for,
(And now it’s a poem. But still playing.)
But Charlie, Doris, and Sam are not “random” people;
They work in our office, we know them, and there’s nothing
Miraculous about them as it pertains to their birthdays.
There’s only 365 days in a year; to find one birthday match
I would only have to ask 365 people, and August 10th
Would step up and shake my hand, so why do we have to
Multiply 365 times 365? That number is too big, isn’t it?
Multiplying is just adding very fast; multiplying is merely fast addition.
Mathematics is about speed as well as amount.
So that big number is our denominator,
Which is what we are “going into,” the size of the army we attack.
And then we replace one, with three times two times one—
Or six—as the numerator; three calendar days on either side is an easier hit.
But yes, the big number, the denominator, is too big; the first birthday nothing,
The first birthday can be anywhere—the odds of the first are three hundred sixty five
Over three hundred sixty five, or one—or, no odds at all.
So three birthdays consecutively only need three sixty five
Multiplied by itself once, not twice. But hell, that’s still a big number—
Nearly impossible odds. Difficult enough to find a soulmate,
One born under the same star as you are: 365 to 1.
And then the next factor: that life’s circumstances will be favorable
To the two of you? Then we have to multiply 365 X 365,
And we get 133, 225 to 1. Those overwhelming odds
Say you will never be happy in love.
Happy birthday. I love you. Good luck.