So it's been quite a while since I last posted and many things have happened. I got married, twice (to the same man) and went to a couple weddings for friends and family, a niece was born, another niece graduated...many more things that I can't remember but I'm sure they happened.
This post is... something of a different one I guess. A bit of a rant if you will.
I don't mean to toot my own horn, but I feel that I'm a decent vocalist, and a passable piano player (I can chord decently...and read music, I just choose not to) - but I feel like a bit of an underdog most times. Actually "a bit" would be an understatement. Friends of mine are incredibly talented, and I'm all for showcasing talent and giving credit when/where it's due, but COME ON. There is no need to ONLY showcase those talents, and none others.
I don't mean to be a diva, or hog the spotlight - that's not my thing. But fairness when it comes to things like that would be a bonus. You can't give someone the spotlight and then yank it away to give it to someone who already HAS spotlight... especially when there are people with none. I know that sounds like a horrible explanation of the issue, but think of it this way:
Every kid gets a puzzle, some get better and harder puzzles, and some get mediocre or super easy puzzles. Now, one of the kids with the hard puzzle is REALLY good at them, and another kid with a hard puzzle is also good at them, maybe its just not as noticeable. Now, take the puzzle from the second kid, and give it to the one that is REALLY good and has a hard puzzle already, give the second kid a mediocre one instead. What's left? The kids with the crappy puzzles. Those kids - they're smart too, they've got puzzle talent, no one notices though, cause they never get the challenging puzzles. Is this fair? No. This is called stacking the deck (in my opinion). What if these kids were all in a puzzle tournament (for the sake of my argument, these exist), kid A with the TWO hard puzzles, kid B who HAD a hard puzzle and now has a mediocre one, and kids C and D who have craptastic puzzles. Kid A is CLEARLY going to look awesome because they've been given the opportunity, kid B - mediocre and kinda...ehh. Kids C and D are basically going to go unnoticed. BUT WAIT - there's actually a FIFTH kid. Yep, Kid E. No one even THINKS to offer kid E a puzzle because they're just not sure about their puzzle solving abilities, and frankly, they don't want to try the kid out at a tournament and have them fail. So we leave kid E on the support team and let them be second fiddle to kids C and D who are playing second fiddle (but only slightly) to kid B - who is playing back up second fiddle to kid A.
What is wrong with this picture? Everything. Jeepers! If I were in charge of things, they would be WAAY different. Kids A, B, C, D, and E would be given equal opportunity. If they didn't WANT the hard puzzle, they could choose at that point to go with a mediocre or crappy one. They wouldn't be forced to do it without a conversation about it. Kids A-E would get to "audition" per se for the chance to 'lead the way' in the puzzle tournament. Better and more challenging puzzles would be awarded to those who wanted them and felt comfortable completing them. Maybe kid A actually only wants a mediocre puzzle - likely not, but maybe that's the case. Maybe, just maybe, kid E wants the HARDEST puzzle, they want to 'lead the way'. Maybe kids B, C and D want really hard puzzles but are unsure about how to ask for them, maybe they want hard puzzles but no one has ever given them the chance to try them. In my world, they would get the chance to find out.
So many things are wrong here - the fact that kids B-E aren't saying anything to the puzzle leader, the fact that kid A isn't stepping down to offer the puzzle to someone else, the fact that the puzzle leader is fine with the way things are going.
Now - imagine kids A-C are really good friends, and good friends with the puzzle leader. Kid B wants to say something, but knows that it'll either get misconstrued, or won't remain anonymous. What should kid B do? B knows that kid C likely doesn't feel the same way, and can't confide in them, and they're not as close with kids D and E so it would be a bit weird to go to them to see what they think - never mind that, what would they even do with the information gathered?
If you know what kid B should do - by all means, feel free to comment and let me know. If you have any ideas at all - aside from leaving the puzzle group (at this point it's not an option) let me know. Kid B would be happy to hear your thoughts too.
