Kick in that Extra Life

I was around 6 or 7 and was at “learn to skate” at the local ice rink. I had just gotten done skating and walked into the lobby where they had a huge variety of video games to play. I of course chose to play The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles but the only issue was that I did not have any money at the time. So I did what any 7 year old would do, I kicked the machine with my skate hoping something would happen and to my suprise the machine turned on! I got about halfway through the first level when I lost… “Meh, was fun while it lasted” but then the machine gave me another life as if I had put money back in the machine. I couldn’t believe it, so I kept playing and kept losing and kept getting another life. This continued on and on to the point where I was getting further and further in the game because I was learning from what was working and learning from my mistakes on what wasn’t.

At one point a small crowd started to form, and a few people asked if they could join in. They did and they lost, but the game never gave them an extra life. It was as if the game knew who was there to try and grab the free ride. At one point I looked behind me because I figured my mother would be upset; “can we please leave, I have things to do” I figured she’d be saying to herself. But she didn’t and she wasn’t. She was just sitting there patiently watching me play the game with a smile on her face. She saw how I was learning, how much fun I was having and how I was so close to accomplishing my goal of beating the game.

“The game hasn’t won when you lose, the game has won when you give up.”

The parallels between real life and a video game that day were undeniable, to the point that I remember this moment some 27 years later. Life is going to throw everything it can at you as you strive for success, the tough part as humans is not making the same mistakes again and again. Be prepared, have patience and understand how the game is played. Having the drive and determination to beat the game even if we lose the first time is very difficult and humbling but the game hasn’t won when you lose, the game has won when you give up.

Three hours later I ultimately beat that video game (no big deal 💁‍♂️) and when I turned around there was no big crowd to congratulate me, literally there was one person. It will always be the people who believed in you from the start, watched you learn, grow and patiently waited every step of the way. Surround yourself with the people who believe in you and will lead to your success, everyone else is just there for the show.

-Paulie 🌵

P.S. I think we did go and get Wendys or something afterwards though because it was Saturday afternoon and YOLO.