I have recently started a new hobby during my seemingly endless free time: building card houses! I got the idea from my cousin, and found it to be an excellent exercise in concentration and patience, and even, to some extent, a great way to develop mediocre architectural skills! :P
So far, I've build a few card houses, a card castle, a twin tower of cards ( well, almost) and even a card colosseum!
When I sat back and thought about it, I realised that this apparently frivolous pursuit of mine can teach you a lot about life, if you choose to learn. So here's a list of the things I've learnt so far. Many of them may sound cliched to you, but it's MY blog and I can write whatever I want :D
- With a large number of like-minded people, great things can be achieved. (A single card can't even stand on its own, but the more cards you add, the bigger your house will be)
- If you fall down, just stand up again! Who knows, you may go even further this time. Failure isn't the end of the world.
- You've gotta work with what you have. If you don't believe it's good enough, you might be surprised ( But if you do, then you definitely won't be).
- The top layer is always the flimsiest. It's what there is deep down that holds everything else up.
- Don't be too proud or afraid to ask for help. You get the job done faster and better, and you also have more fun. You might have to share credit, but the end result usually produces more than enough credit to share.
- Never get too overconfident. Just when you think you're done and begin celebrating before completing the very last step, everything you worked for can come crashing down in an instant.
- If one, layer, level, or side of the card-house falls, don't knock the entire thing down in frustration. What I mean to say is, don't give up hope when you face minor setbacks. Just backtrack to the point you slipped up at, and begin from there. Why would you want to do TWICE the work when you could have dont only ONE AND A HALF TIMES the work?
- Life, like the house of cards, is fragile. Don't waste it taking stupid, unnecessary risks, because you never know when a gust of wind might blow your way.
- On the other hand, don't waste your life sitting in a 'deck'. Which card do you think is better, the one who has been flat the whole time, or the one who has stood at the top, balancing on its edge?
- It is possible for ANYONE to accomplish incredible things if they have the determination and willpower. When the house is finished, it doesn't matter whether the cards at the top are Kings, Queens and Aces or 5s, 6s and 7s.
- And lastly, I think it's good to have expectations, but don't rely on them too much. Most of my card houses, many of my poems and even this particular piece of writing, turned out so much bigger and better than I thought they would be! This is why I feel that we should be striving, right until our last breath, to be something more than what we already are.
