Today, a thought came to mind that I’m sure you’ve encountered and maybe even considered before in your life. I’ve heard it stated many times that ‘I’ve been dealt a bad hand in life’. Or God or Life has dealt someone a bad hand. Does this imply life is a card game? What do we do when we are dealt a bad hand in life? Do we keep doing the same thing? Do we hang onto or maintain our grip on the hand we’ve been dealt? Is there a nefarious or ominous dealer controlling our destiny?
Does anyone know or remember a song by a man named Kenny Rogers called The Gambler? Kenny didn’t write this song (Don Schlitz wrote the lyrics) but Kenny told the story and in my humble opinion, Kenny told it well.
Part of the lyrics to this song states that ‘You’ve got to know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away, know when to run’. To me, this means we have the ability to change our lives. We are not forced to remain in the same circumstances or situation if we choose not to do this. And – if we feel our circumstances is heading in the right direction – we can hang onto the hand we’ve been dealt and stay in the game. But remember: just because you choose to fold your hand doesn’t mean it’s over. I promise – life will deal you another hand. And it begins again.
We all have the chance to start over, to change our lives by improving our lives. We can follow our dream – we can work toward our heart’s desires – we can explore other avenues – we can always choose another hand. We can hold – or we can fold. Sometimes it’s good to walk away and start again. Sometimes, it’s good to run away… as fast as you can… and create a gap between yourself and what you know is not making you happy or fulfilling you. Hold ‘em or fold ‘em.
I take a deep breath every day, look up into the sky, and say, Deal me in!
I’ll provide a link for your convenience and entertainment to have a listen to this song.