Are We Just Playing the Cards We’re Dealt?
You know, teaching sausage making has given me a weird perspective on this. I spend my days taking a handful of raw, separate ingredients meat, spices, casings and through a deliberate process, turn them into something cohesive and new. It feels like an act of creation, but I’m still bound by the quality of what I start with.
It makes me wonder about that card deck analogy. In my other hobbies, like paleontology, you’re literally uncovering the hand the earth dealt millions of years ago. You can’t change the fossils you find. But in a card game, a skilled player can influence the odds through strategy, even bluffing.
So where does that leave us in daily life? Are we just reacting to the circumstances we’re born into, or do we have more control to shuffle the elements? I try to live minimally, which feels like consciously discarding cards from my hand to play a tighter, more intentional game. But is that still just playing the hand, or is it a subtle shuffle?
I’d love to hear how others see it. Does it feel more like fate or craftsmanship to you?