The Game of Life

My 15 year old played The Game of Life the other day*

“It’s really fun – we should get it.”

I didn’t have the heart to tell her that Life is nothing like life. Life is a lot of things, but (mostly) life is a four letter word.

Those who know me know that I swear ~~like a sailor~~, ~~like a shipload of sailors~~, like a fleet of sailors. For those of you who don’t know me, welcome to my world! I’m Tracey, and I’ll be your guide. I grew up in Camarillo, home to the old and insane.** Being neither, I moved away to seek my fame and fortune in the wilds of Los Angeles (I didn’t find fame or fortune, but I did find a big bear who followed home). Being both, I returned to Camarillo. I live with two kids (the one I birthed and the one I married) and no cats, because they make me sneeze and wheeze. Plus, they’re cats.

Where was I? Ah yes, swearing. I’ve been a fan of four letter words since I was young and thought I knew it all. Now that I’m not and I don’t, I have learned some brand news ones, which I would love to share with you.

Today’s word is life

From Miriam-Webster

Life noun \ˈlīf\

: the ability to grow, change, etc., that separates plants and animals from things like water or rocks
: the period of time when a person is alive
: the experience of being alive

That’s the dictionary’s definition.

Life is so much more. Like most four letter words, it’s messy and foul, and I often find myself using other four letter words when it doesn’t go the way I want it to. It’s also amazingly beautiful, if you know where to look.

I think I’ve discovered the secret to life – she’s a BITCH (Beautiful, Interesting, Terrifying, Childlike and Hard) who wants us to grow and change. She’s a fierce teacher, who will knock you down if you’re not paying attention. She’s also an amazing companion who can take you for a wild ride, if you let her.

I made the mistake of letting Fear scare me away from living last year. This year, I’m getting in the car, taking the top down, and letting her drive.

I think Vivian Greene put it best:

So, tell me. What life lessons have you learned? Did you choose to learn them the easy way or the hard way?

*Ok, it was last month. Time is a wibbly-wobbly, timey wimey thing

** Camarillo used to be home to Camarillo State Hospital (now CSUCI) and Leisure Village (Leisure Village is still there. I live down the street)

6 thoughts on “The Game of Life”

I have tried to learn from other people’s mistakes as much as possible – but that hasn’t saved me from having to learn the hard way on a lot of things.

There are plenty of times where a tough situation will happen and my first response is “but I’m a kid, I shouldn’t be doing this” until I realize that I am not a kid which makes it even more scary sometimes…

The biggest life lesson that I have tried to learn – but seem to be failing at – is that if a person doesn’t take care of themselves enough they can’t help others… If anyone has a magic wand to get that one in my thick head I’d appreciate it 🙂

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twistingsuburbia says:

01/20/2016 at 3:58 pm

Learning to “fill the well” is a lesson we all struggle with. Identifying it as an issue is the first step to learning.
❤

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Reply

It is so easy to take on other’s problems(especially family members), which makes your own Life seem even harder. Unfortunately taht seems to be an issue for women only, not men.I

LikeLiked by 1 person

Like this post – I find that sometimes life has to be grabbed by the scruff of the neck and given a good shake!

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Thank you! I find that giving life a good shake is really good at getting me out of a rut. You have to be careful though – sometimes she bites!

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MomuMENTALly Me

Before all y’all flame me, I am well aware that the word is “monumentally” not “momumentally.” Unlike most of the misspelled words on my blog, the title is intentional, and not just misspelled due to a typo or a brainfart brought on by oldtimer’s syndrome. From Mirriam Webster: Monumentally [ˈˌmänyəˈmen(t)əlē] 1. to a very great […]

FundaMENTALly Me

Once upon a time, back when I was just a beginning blogger (HA! still a beginner, but that’s for another post), I struggled to find my way – to come up with first post, find my voice, my niche, my raison d’être – or at least my blog title. This was my first wordpress blog. […]

Christina says:

01/20/2016 at 3:56 pm

I have tried to learn from other people’s mistakes as much as possible – but that hasn’t saved me from having to learn the hard way on a lot of things.

There are plenty of times where a tough situation will happen and my first response is “but I’m a kid, I shouldn’t be doing this” until I realize that I am not a kid which makes it even more scary sometimes…

The biggest life lesson that I have tried to learn – but seem to be failing at – is that if a person doesn’t take care of themselves enough they can’t help others… If anyone has a magic wand to get that one in my thick head I’d appreciate it 🙂

LikeLiked by 1 person

1. twistingsuburbia says:
  
  01/20/2016 at 3:58 pm
  
  Learning to “fill the well” is a lesson we all struggle with. Identifying it as an issue is the first step to learning.
  ❤
  
  LikeLike
  
Mary Hull says:

01/21/2016 at 5:42 am

It is so easy to take on other’s problems(especially family members), which makes your own Life seem even harder. Unfortunately taht seems to be an issue for women only, not men.I

LikeLiked by 1 person

Suzy Barker says:

02/03/2016 at 1:03 am

Like this post – I find that sometimes life has to be grabbed by the scruff of the neck and given a good shake!

LikeLiked by 1 person

twistingsuburbia says:

02/03/2016 at 1:13 am

Thank you! I find that giving life a good shake is really good at getting me out of a rut. You have to be careful though – sometimes she bites!

LikeLike

Pingback: I Don’t Want to Talk About It | Twisting Suburbia

6 responses to “The Game of Life”

Christina

01/20/2016

I have tried to learn from other people’s mistakes as much as possible – but that hasn’t saved me from having to learn the hard way on a lot of things.

There are plenty of times where a tough situation will happen and my first response is “but I’m a kid, I shouldn’t be doing this” until I realize that I am not a kid which makes it even more scary sometimes…

The biggest life lesson that I have tried to learn – but seem to be failing at – is that if a person doesn’t take care of themselves enough they can’t help others… If anyone has a magic wand to get that one in my thick head I’d appreciate it 🙂

LikeLike

1. twistingsuburbia
  
  01/20/2016
  
  Learning to “fill the well” is a lesson we all struggle with. Identifying it as an issue is the first step to learning.
  ❤
  
  LikeLike
  
Mary Hull

01/21/2016

It is so easy to take on other’s problems(especially family members), which makes your own Life seem even harder. Unfortunately taht seems to be an issue for women only, not men.I

LikeLike

Suzy Barker

02/03/2016

Like this post – I find that sometimes life has to be grabbed by the scruff of the neck and given a good shake!

LikeLike

twistingsuburbia

02/03/2016

Thank you! I find that giving life a good shake is really good at getting me out of a rut. You have to be careful though – sometimes she bites!

LikeLike

I Don’t Want to Talk About It | Twisting Suburbia

03/09/2016

[…] Life may be a bitch, but Loss is a nasty, low down, evil snake in the grass (no disrespect to snakes. I like them – they’re like legless lizards). She fights dirty. […]

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