Chapter 4
Attitude
The gifted singer/songwriter Kenny Rogers recorded a song a few years ago that embodies my entire approach to dealing with challenges. The song is called, "The Gambler", and
the lyric that got me through my wife's strokes, the words I found so important, are these:
"Every gambler knows the secret to surviving is knowing what to throw away- knowing what to keep. 'Cause every hand's a winner, and every hand's a loser, and the best that you can
hope for is to die in your sleep." ("The Gambler", written by DonSchlitz, produced by Larry Butler)
I personally think we can hope for much more than just dying in our sleep. But it's the part about "every hand's a winner, and every hand's a loser" that stopped me in my tracks
and gave me a "wake up call".
Perhaps you know, have heard of, or play the card game of Contract Bridge? In tournament play, there may be 50 tables set out. At each table, the cards are all pre-arranged so that at
every table, each person sitting North, East, South or West has exactly the same cards. The players 'bid' their cards for a contract, and the object is to collect or win as many "tricks" or points
as possible. At some tables, the players will not make their contract, so they lose points. At other tables, players will just barely make their contract, so they accumulate some points.
Then there are
some tables where the players not only make their contract, they make even more than they contracted for, and they are awarded a bonus. Remember, all of them are playing exactly the same pre-arranged cards,
just getting vastly different results!
Every hand's a winner, and every hand's a loser... His song made me realize you must play to win.
There's another card game that makes another vital point: In draw poker, you are dealt some cards. you decide which ones you want to keep, discard the
ones you don't want, and receive replacements for the darts you throw away, thus getting a "Second Chance" to play your hand.
With my wife's strokes, as is the case for many people with disabilities, there aren't second chances. Those are the cards you were dealt- and those are the only cards you get to play.
That's why you must make the most of them. "Every hand's a winner, and every hand's a loser". Like I said, I play to win. And you must, too! |
