“We look before and after, And pine for what is not; Our
sincerest laughter With some pain is fraught; Our sweetest songs are those that
tell of saddest thought.” Percy Shelly, poet
The smile:
My grandmother was an
interesting ol’ lady, full of vinegar and self-resolve. One afternoon she drove to the convenience store
on the corner from her home to get a pack of the filterless Camel cigarettes
she smoked while she sipped straight bourbon during WWE wrastlin’ . With the intention
that it would only take her a moment to get what she needed, she left the car
running and hobbled into the store.
She bought what she had come to get and was working to get
the carton into her suitcase sized purse when she glanced up to see four large,
rough looking men straight from the hood sitting in her car. Rap music shook
the car so hard from the music they were listening she could see the headlights
vibrate to the beat. She gritted her teeth and fished around in her purse until
she found the nickel plated .38 revolver in the bottom. She narrowed her eyes
and took the few steps she needed to get to the driver’s side door. She rapped
on the window with the barrel of his pistol. The 300 plus pound man who sat on
the other side gasped in surprise, slowly turned down the radio and rolled down
the window. She simply said, “You know what you need to do.”
All four men quietly got out of the car without saying a
word and moved to the sidewalk. She climbed into the driver’s seat and adjusted
it all the way forward so she could reach the petals. The men stood and watched
as she pulled away in the car and headed home.
For spite she turned the rap music back up to show them they couldn’t
rattle her.
She pulled into the driveway at home to be greeted by my
grandfather as he sat on the front porch and watched people pass in the
neighborhood. He frowned and asked, “Honey, where did you get the new car?”
The ponder:
So I am playing this game 2048 this morning. My actual
current game board is pictured below for anyone that is a fan. I have been
playing this specific game for a few minutes every day for about six weeks. I’m
not sure why…why I am playing this game. I already know the outcome. There will
evidently be a point where I have no more moves and the game will end. Yes, I
have determined how to get extremely high points in the game though there is no
real winning. In the end the game will not be defeated.
Last night a friend sent me the attached video of Tyler
Perry’s Medea talking about relationships. Here’s the link: https://vimeo.com/1814525 . The humor is
spot on as is the advice. While “don’t mix up seasonal people with life time
expectations” sounds simple to follow, it can often be like the 2048 game. Both
are fun in the beginning. Both have rewards that bring you some certain amount
of satisfaction for a moment. Both make you want to keep trying to accumulate the
points and go farther. Both will end in the same way.
The question for today’s ponder…if you are involved in a
2048 scenario in your life, what point will you quit playing?
No comments:
Post a Comment