Hey! Whoa! Aaah! Noooo! What are you doing?
The Game Master: I
just moved you to the Blue27 – Zeta6 – Tuna9 – 4 - to
the 378 power, on the board.
Oh, no, you don't. Everything was going great
where I was. I liked it there, so calm and comfortable, but things are a mess
in this place. So I demand, with all the urgency I can muster, that you move me
back to where I was immediately.
The Game Master: That’s
not how this works. I move you when you need to be moved. You can’t go back,
but you have the opportunity to make good moves from the new square you are on.
That’s totally unacceptable. Who do you think
you are? Do you think you own the board?
The Game Master: Well,
I did make the board, so you could say I own it.
But why would you move me to this
square? It makes no possible sense! Now, move me back to where I was.
The Game Master: You
had become stagnant and much too comfortable there. Since you were not going to
make a move, I made one for you.
But why would you move me backward on the
board? This square is filled with such hardship and pain—it’s literally a
setback. I’m not sure I can ever recover, and I don’t know if I will have the
strength to move forward again.
The Game Master: It’s
impossible to understand the game while standing on the board. You can try, but
you will fail—and drive yourself in the process.
Every move has a reason, but it is connected to and
influenced by the needs and moves of other players and your own good and bad moves.
Oh, by the way, it’s your move.
But this still makes no sense – no sense whatsoever!
The Game Master: None
of my moves make sense to you in the present. Fully understanding my
moves can take weeks, months, or even years. Sometimes, you will realize that
my move was even brilliant. Everything does work together for good – but not
necessarily for your good at the time.
So, it’s a three-dimensional game – like three-dimensional
chess?
The Game Master: (laughing)
Three dimensions, that’s funny. It’s a game of infinite dimensions and,
for you, incomprehensible complexity. Your move.
Then how can I win a game that I have no chance
of understanding? What am I supposed to do?
The Game Master: Don’t focus on winning
the game. You can’t master the big picture because you can’t see it. You only
need to focus on making your next move a good one—which reminds me, your move.
Why did you even have to move me?
The Game Master: I move
you for various reasons. You may not be moving enough or in the right
direction. I may move you off of a dangerous square, or I may move you in
combination with other people's moves. For example, you may have to lose
sometimes so that another person can win.
But I resent being a mere pawn in this bizarre
game of yours.
The Game Master: Oh, you are much more than a
pawn to me. Moving you to Blue27 – Zeta6 – Tuna9 – 4 - to the 378, power square
was complicated, strategic, and well thought out. Now, your move.
How do I know this was even an allowed move?
What are the rules of this game? What are the rules?
The Game Master: I made the board. I invented the
game. I wrote the rules.
Ah, now we are getting somewhere. Show me the
rules!
The Game Master: Unfortunately,
you can’t see the rules because you wouldn’t be able to understand them.
Then how can I possibly win at this game without
knowing the rules?
The Game Master: Well,
I did give you a guidebook on your moves. Good moves get you to good places on
the board, and bad moves get you bad squares. It doesn’t matter much where on
the board you are; what is essential is your next move. I strongly suggest
reading the guidebook again, since your next move off the square you now occupy
is an especially important one.
But the only reason I have to make this
important move is that you – you put me on the terrible square in the first
place! It’s not fair – it’s not fair!
The Game Master: You
are correct; from the player's perspective, it is not fair, at least not fair
enough. But your view of the board will always be tilted. From my perspective, the
board is always flat for everyone. It’s the moves that are important. So now,
your move.
Oh, this is so not fair! You move me back to
that square over there (turning and pointing forward), right
now - I demand it!
The Game Master: Your
move (The Game Master exits)
When I swung back around, he was gone. I looked at the
board before me; it was so different from yesterday’s. Yes, this was a setback,
but some of the other pieces that were blocking my way were no longer there. Now,
there were more open spaces on the board to move. Where there was no motivation
to move off my old square, now I had to move forward even if I was starting
from further back. Yes, it was my move, and it did need to be a good one …
