— Huy Nguyen

(and what I learnt about life from playing Chinese Chess in High-school)

I used to play Chinese Chess (Xiangqi). In fact, I was very good at it, Bronze Medal (Individual Category) in Vietname Youth Chinese Chess Competition, Gold Medal (Team Category) that same year, and a countless medals city-level. I’m saying this not to brag. It simply means this: I enjoy challenging, heads-on games, like Chinese Chess.

But never did I relate this game to a broader game: the game of life.

The game of life is an interesting game, it’s similar yet different from all games I’ve ever played. A game is a simple concept: a scenario, a set of rules and a limited resources you’re given at hand. How different is this from your life?

Rules
The game of life appreciates and favors those who understand the rules. But unlike other games, in the game of life, the rules are vast, vague and left for players to find out. And rules have a new name in the game of life: wisdom.

And in the process of studying the rules, you acquire something intermediary, something that gives you an advantageous edge over your opponents: knowledge.

Situations
Unlike the game of chess (in which each game consists of 60 moves on average), the game of life is an enduring game, an 80-year long game. If you make one wrong move, no matter how bad it is, there is always a fix that works.

Instead of thinking about the mistake, what is your next move?

Decisions
In the game of chess, 1 single move (no matter how smart) can’t help you win, it is a series of right and incremental moves that leads to victory.

In the game of life, the same thing applies. Don’t bet too much on a single decision. Bet on the ones following. So when I heard someone telling his story and conclude: “That was the single-most important decision in my life”, I know there’s much more to that.

There’s a saying: “Happiness is a journey, not a process”. By thinking life as a game, I grasp this concept much better. I constantly remind myself about the game of life when I get into tough situations, accepting the moves I’ve made, and start to think of the next move.

Treat life as a game, and see how good a player you could be?

Sáng 7h đi với dì qua bên kia đường ăn bún, đang ngồi chờ bún, 1 chú – gầy, da ngăm đen, chạy chiếc xích lô cũ chắc cũng phải hơn 5 năm – bước vô hỏi cô bán bún 1 câu làm mình chạnh lòng.

“Bún có bán 5 ngàn ko o?”

Cuộc đời của những con người này làm việc có lười nhác hơn ai đâu?