Quest, Conquest and Consequences

Hello there and welcome. It's been a while (it wasn't Covid or anything of such, just had a writers block and a lot on my plate) but thank God I'm about having an empty plate so I can have time to write more. Hope you have been good and the pandemic didn't give your life a 360 degree change, well if it did, I am glad you are still alive reading this, it tells me you a navigating the "new way of life" pretty well.

Now, as an avid Candy Crush player (some even say I am addicted), there is a bonus section where you have to do like a gamble to get the bonuses. With each choice comes a reward but if you choose the one with a monster, you forfeit everything won prior and you'll have to wait for 24 hours to get another chance at it. Interestingly, after each choice, an option of "Claim Reward" is there, for you to either walk away with your gifts or continue "playing" (which is simply another word for gamble), but you know that voice inside that keeps nudging you to "give it one more pick" right? It often gets the upper hand and when you pick the monster, you are now faced with another choice to either "give up" or "continue playing" but that comes at a cost of ten (10 gold bars).  I usually enjoy that stage because whenever I manage to get away with playing the high stakes and missing the monster, I know I am bound to conquer several stages before some of the usually time-bound bonuses expire, but when I do pick the monster (which happens more often than I win), I feel the "damn, you should have walked away after getting the lollipop or the hand or something juicy".  Funny enough though, I repeat same process after the 24 hour break period. Want to know why? Because I am human and like it or not, Charles Dickens figured it out long ago that there is indeed an "Oliver Twist" in each and every one of us. That quest to add one more "bonus", achieve one more trophy, attain one more height, conquer one more stage and "give it one more try" can never really be satisfied by a mere 24 hour rest period as in the case of my favourite game, or in a 24 days, months, years and by God not even in decades either. It takes a very strong will to look at that covered ballon and walk away with whatever "bonus" you already have earned.

The lesson for me everyday is, Isaac, this "bonuses" are enough to take you through so many levels if only you play well and hard as long as you have them, I must confess, I sometimes ignore my own advise and sense and reasoning by falling for my natural instincts. Most times, I think of how I didn’t even start the game with anything in the first place and then look at the "bonuses" I've been able to accumulate for that day and then move on. Interestingly, I am learning to apply this to my life in general, I came to this world empty, just a crying infant that had everything pre-arranged for, from my name to the first food, clothes, school and pretty much everything till I got to adulthood were all pre-planned/arranged by my parents before I was even born. For those of us who believe in God (or a supreme being), you will come across a lot of beliefs and if you happen to believe in pre-destination, you will know that it also means that from the moment you came to this world to the moment you will exit same, everything has been pre-planned and arranged for you (I'll talk about choices later).

So, my logic is this, if you came empty, and will leave empty, why set yourself on such a quest? Why so many conquest? Why pay the price for picking a monster? Why pay for the consequences of what has already been technically "rigged" to teach you a lesson? Why not just "claim the reward" and enjoy the game?

Don't get it twisted "Oliver", I am not saying you should not aspire and demand more from the game and life. Greatness never comes from "claiming" mediocre "rewards" but from daring for more and pushing limits/boundaries and every thing pushable including the status quo and rules but then again I ask, at what cost and to what end? Yes, the quests are many and never exhausted, and oh my goodness the taste of victory after a conquest cannot be contained in writing but what about the consequences? When do you draw the line? When do you realise the sword is two edged? When do you "claim rewards", "quit game" or "continue playing? 

NO GUTS, NO GLORY THEY SAY, BUT THERE IS NO GLORY IN THE GUTTERS EITHER.