Sweetheart and I were playing cards with friends last week.
We played a fun game that did not involve money or gambling, but it did involve some thought and it did involve some strategy.
Let me say from the beginning that, first and foremost, the outcome of the games depends a lot on what cards you are dealt. However, how you play your cards can bring victory out of, what appears to be, loss.
It's important to know the rules of the game and how to make your plays. That alone is not enough for you to win the game, however. And that is the object, isn't it?
The secret (or not-so-secret) ingredient is strategy. It's coming up with a plan, implementing it, and following through to completion, all the while dodging the efforts of your opponents, who have the same objective.
If you're lucky, your opponents have not come up with a plan and are just following the rules and playing their cards.
Card playing is good practice for other things you do in life--applying for a job, doing your job, running for public office, learning a new dance. Not everything is a guaranteed victory, because there may be someone out there with their own plan that interferes with yours.
Let's face it--some plans are good and some plans are bad. But who decides what is good and what is bad? There is a thing called morals that are designed to keep us on a track that is beneficial to each of us and all of us.
A lot of us had them at one time and we didn't have the chaos that is shown on the news every night. We respected each other. We spoke kindly to one another. We rarely used violence to get our point across. We listened to each other. At least, for the most part.
Where did those morals come from? Mine came from my parents, my school teachers, and my church. And, when I went to church, it was full of people learning the same morals and principles that I was.
Now, when I go into a church, it is almost empty. What kind of principles are being taught at school? How many people have been, or are being, raised by two parents?
In this venture of life, we have all been given special talents and a special mission. It helps if we start out with a good hand, but, if we play our cards right, we can come out as winners.
Dorothy is the author of two books—“Miles and Miracles” and “Getting It All Together “. You can purchase a book or make a comment by emailing her at dorothybutzknight@gmail.com
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