PLAY YOUR HAND

“It doesn’t matter what cards you’re dealt. It’s what you do with those cards. Never complain. Just keep pushing forward. Find a positive in anything and just fight for it.”

Baker Mayfield

Do you play cards? If you do, then you know that in a card game, a certain number of random cards are dealt to each player and these cards collectively form a hand. A hand can be filled with either good or bad cards but, the objective of most card games is to win using the cards that you’ve been dealt-good or bad. As a card player, I began to wonder about the cards that we’ve been given in life.  Are they good or bad cards? Or are they a combination of both? Are we happy with our hands? Do we play our cards individually or do we have a strategy to play our entire hand? Are we creating a winning hand using the cards we’ve been dealt? Are we trying? Is it even possible to create a winning hand with the cards we’ve been dealt?

When we are born, we are ALL dealt our hand of random cards. Yet, as we grow, we quickly discover that our cards are NOT necessarily equal to the cards dealt to others.  It may seem unfair but it’s true, none of us have the same hand of cards. Some of us had both parent’s cards. Some of us had one parent card. Some had the adopted card. Some had the placed in foster care card. Some had the born with a disability card. Some were born with a silver spoon and had the affluence card. While others had the born poor with a horrific and tragic beginning card. So, how can we make a winning hand with the cards that we’ve been dealt?

I’m sure we’ve all heard-suck it up; man up; put your big girl panties on; put your big boy pants on; deal with it; grow up- pertaining to situations and/or obstacles that we’ve encountered. Typically, these phrases mean- deal with it; address your fears; stop complaining. But to some, these phrases may be encouragement while others may think these statements lack empathy and understanding. Nonetheless, these phrases simply mean play the hand that you’ve been dealt. But how? How do we play the cards we’ve been dealt? Do we fold? Or do we hold?

Folding occurs when we view our cards and our hand as being unwinnable. Some think their cards are unfair. and they throw their hand in. They choose to escape life and decide that the drugs and crime cards are much easier cards to play. So they fold!! Others have their cards professionally analyzed and afterward they throw their hand in. They now believe that the depression and anxiety cards are much easier cards for them to play. So they fold!! Some, however, choose to stay and hold with the cards that they’ve been given because they realize that within their cards, lies the tools, resources, and opportunities necessary to produce a winning hand.

So, despite the appearance of our cards, life deals us ALL a winning hand. The problem is we don’t realize we have a winning hand because we are too busy looking at the cards in the hands of others. Our cards may not look like a winning hand. They may not feel like a winning hand and we may not believe that it is a winning hand, but it is. We’re all dealt the right cards and the right hand we need to win, we just need to patiently play our cards and eventually our cards will produce a winning hand.  So ANTE UP AND PLAY YOUR HAND!!!  

SHIP TALK: Are your cards-good or bad? Are you folding? If so, why? Are you holding? If so, why?

If you’d like to leave a comment, please scroll to the bottom of the page.