The Game of Life: why some of the rules have changed.

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I remember playing this game when I was just a kid.  Of course I hated to loose, but in loosing I gained some very valuable insight into what I would experience much later in life. Now life is much more complex then just a simple board game, but the similarities are eerily present.

In a board game there is obviously a winner and at least one looser.  In most cases depending on the game there can only be one winner and the rest of the players are the losers.  In actual life, we tend to see people as winners and losers.  Now to some the winner is the one who has the most money at the end of the game, and the game as we know it is life itself.   If one were to believe this, then they would be like so many others out there today who believe it as well.  The truth of the matter is this:  in life there are no losers.  Certainly there are occasions when things don't go as planned, and some would say that this is one of those things that will go down in the loss column.  However, a simple miscalculation does not mean that all is lost and one will never be the winner.  On the contrary, the one who continues to grind it out after a loss is just as much a winner as the one who ends up with all the money.

This is where I line up when it comes to the "Game of Life".  First off lets tackle the subject of rules.  In board games there are certain rules that have to be followed.  We follow them to make it fair for all who are playing.  In life we also have rules and these rules, which should come as no surprise, are there to ensure that everyone has the opportunity for fair play.  Stay with me now, and I promise you this will all make sense in just a short period of time.  So we have rules to keep it fair, the game has a winner and a number of losers, and for all intents and purposes the game has a specific strategy.  So far it seems to line up pretty well with this thing we call life.  Now in the actual board game there are many turns, many obstacles, and ample opportunity to get off track and lose everything.  Once again, sounds pretty close to what we have gone through as mortal beings.  Now the winner is the one who crosses the line first.  Everyone else on the board is now classified as a loser. Sadly I have observed individuals who display this very same attitude in real life.  These people have reached a certain level of success and they, not all mind you, but many, feel as though the rest of us are a bunch of saps and they are the rightful winner in the game of life because they have come away with the spoils of war.  Now this is where it gets interesting.  As I said I would get to this point, and you will thank me once you have read what I am about to write.

In the actual "Game of Life" I really don't believe in rules, at least rules that have been conjured up by those who have no clue as to the true nature of things.  I certainly do not believe there are losers.  In my estimation there are many people who might be perceived as winners by the world's standards, but they are just as much of a loser as the one who has never accomplished anything in life. Why you ask?  Simply put they have never learned the importance of giving for the sake of others, and only taking for the good of themselves.  Not passing judgment, simply stating a fact.

Here is the simple truth:  the game of life is nothing more, and nothing less then being your authentic self, doing what you were created to do, and understanding your part in helping the rest of humanity.  Certain people might call it a game, but it really is simply a way of life.  As humans we have been conditioned to believe that life has to be a certain way.  This so called way is laced with lack, depression, want, and all kinds of things that we don't desire but seem to fall into.  Board games are also laced with ups and downs so to speak:  "Go directly to Jail", "Lose a Turn", "Go back four spaces".  I don't think I've ever seen a game where there wasn't something built into it that wasn't punitive in nature.  Many people today feel as though this punitive accent is something that they are locked into in life.  Truth being what it is, I say no way.  We are not locked into these things, we only think we are.  Once you change your thinking most if not all of those things seem to disappear and things begin to change for you.

So time to decide, you can continue on playing the games of life, those games that others say you must participate in, or you can change the rules, and create your own monopoly of sorts.  You can rid your life of  "Go directly to Jail", "Lose a turn", and "Go back four spaces".  That little wheel on the "Game of Life" board would spin like crazy, and you just never knew what was going to show up.  If you needed a four to hit a particular space all your thoughts were on four.  Come on four, come on big four, come on big boy daddy needs a new pair of shoes.  Your future was dependent on this number coming up.  Sadly the odds of it coming up were not all that great, and you were forced to accept what came your way.

I must ask, is this any way to live a life?  No it's not, you shouldn't, and today you get to change all that.  You are not locked into a set of pre-printed do this, or do that.  You have the freedom to follow your gut, your intuition, your heart, and your spirit.  I suggest you become good friends with you spirit as it is the only one you will ever have, it has always been and always will be.  Sadly too many people never utilize the greatest game changer there ever was.  Bottom line:  forget about the rules set down by others and blaze a trail of your own and see if you don't come out the winner.  But remember this, you will never be a loser, never, ever.