What's on your bingo card? The Game
Life's the caller; you're the player ... let's see what life brings us.
If you’re still on what some of us still call “Twitter,” you may have come across Ryan Hamilton, a new voice on the political abortion scene. Ryan and his wife went through a traumatic pregnancy that needed to be terminated but ran afoul of the Texas anti-abortion laws. Thankfully, Ryan’s wife survived and he started telling their story … and began getting a lot of push back from the anti-abortion crowd. This just seemed to energize Ryan and his voice is gaining strength.
One morning a commenter said to Ryan:
“Ryan IDK if being a national women's health care educator was on your 2024 BINGO card but you are such a light. Thank you for your voice. Thank you for your energy. Thank you for continuing!”
Recently, the bingo card metaphor has been used frequently to highlight surprises, as in “I bet that wasn’t on your bingo card.”
All of this made me wonder if the bingo card idea might not be a fun way to think about our lives … what we want, what we don’t want, and what might completely surprise us. Suddenly, I wanted to see what might be on my bingo card and drew a 25-square bingo card in my journal.
How to play the game
First, of course, life is the caller and you are the player, filling in squares on your own card.
List 8 things you want or would like to have happen. Then, list 8 things you would rather not have show up. After that, you’re ready to play by just watching what life brings you. However, you could think of ways to encourage more of what you want to have happen and plan how to deal with those things you’d prefer not to happen. Because, life being life, you’re likely to get some of each.
Also … I set aside the center square for a “major unexpected shift.”
Regardless of what life brings you, you can win this game. As you start to notice things happening in your life, enter one or two word descriptions into an appropriately designated square with an eye to bingo-ing a row, column or diagonal. Set up some of your own “prizes” for bingos … plus, I will comp a three month subscription for each bingo if you share a comment about your own experience with the game.
Starting now … and the little things count
My first squares: I had just set my board up when I received an email invitation to participate in an open-entry art exhibition with the university. Since it wasn’t on my “wanted” or “not wanted” list but it is a surprise, I entered it in one of my “surprise” boxes.
A couple of days later, I unexpectedly discovered a piece of my Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) system (more about this later in the Messy Organizational Tools Series). And, this weekend I attended a Solstice Festival which has always been a favorite and wound up feeling disappointed. This reaction needs more thought but I put it in a “not wanted” square, so I’ve got a vertical going, and needs one “not wanteds” and one “wanted.” It’s interesting to be staying open to acknowledging what I don’t want, which I would normally just slide by.
Would love to have some of you come play bingo with me.
P.S.
and I have recommended two title evaluators recently. I’ve been “testing” them and thought you should know that the title for this post received a 50% rating from one and a 100% rating from the other. ;-(When I added “The Game” to the title, the score went down on one to 92% and up on the other to 51%. It also sent me the feedback that the title was perceived as negative. I’m using it anyway.
I still think using these analyzers can help us think more deeply about our titles, so here’s the links to them again …
I love the game of Life Bingo idea Joyce, thank you. It's a fun way to look at the curve balls we get thrown. Also, thanks for the headline analyzer comparison, I'm going to try putting a couple headlines in each and see what I get.
this is really a cool idea! How do you set up your board so you arrange the wanted, the not wanted, and the surprises? I probably won't do it but recently i got a surprise or combo of 'not wanted' surprises, and have got a gift from it/them. One of these things is, my car broke. which means I cannot get my cat to the mainland for a vet visit and the blood work he needs. He is old, sick, and my raison d'etre. So it's painful to not be able to provide what he needs and have to rely on what is available and what i CAN do. That's just one of several don't wants that came all at once.
From this:
1) I'm powerless to control situations like this so i may as well do what the Universe is asking... slow down. Relax. Put down the damn ball that is way too heavy and stop hurting myself with the striving
2) I have so many fears. And I have trouble facing them. Sometimes it takes days/weeks/months even to do the simplest 'next step.' I'm seeing how crippled with fear I am. I am not having many successes with this. I'm trying to be my own auto mechanic for the simplest things, with arthritic hands and minor disasters - which feel major because it's all so new. STarting antything creative scares me to death so I avoid even starting, and miss out on many opportunities because of that.
3) Everything takes many times longer to do with no vehicle when one depends on one - sometimes a curse and sometimes a blessing... But there are benefits in that. I have to walk more. I literally almost NEVER walked, not even a 10 min. walk to the store. I have bum hips, back, and feet and I'm overweight be a lot. It hurts. But it will hurt less I hope in time. and like any meditation, i have times of clarity, energy, gratitude, perseverance. The weather is good so walking more is being OK.
4) I'm learning how to ask for or let help come when it comes unannounced (a surprise gift from the Universe.)
5) One gets used to things that seem hard and then they seem not quite so hard, at least on some days. On bad days, I can take a break - that is called self care. Being not in a vehicle means I meet people on the street, have conversations with strangers and acquaintances, do more out in the world because I can't rely on having the car and don't know if it's fixable and what I'll do if not. I am poor. Buying another is out of the question. It's so interesting to see the difference between what the mind says I can't do without and what i can do without. And the gifts of being more open, out in the weather, more vulnerable, and by necessity, more approachable.
6) Independence is also an illusion. Interdependence is becoming more and more the reality, even though as a formerly 'independent' person I fight it. I LIKE being alone - am basically a hermit. I also like the surprises of connections and the serendipitous happy things that come from people watching and just enjoying humanity enjoying itself.
Don't know where I'd put all this on my bingo card. I'm not used to journaling, setting goals, or doing anything but whatever the moment brings. but as you said, it's a mixed bag and the surprises are there. The things i get that would be on the 'want' list (if i even know what those wants were) end up being the surprises that show me the Universe is alive and trying to help us.