Toe in the Water

Failing to Win

Failing to Win

Feeling lousy today but wanted desperately to update the blog. Had a look through the archives and found this. Who knows? It might even encourage someone.

Why is the insult "loser" so common today? I seem to hear it everywhere - "Oh don't worry about him, he's just a loser" or "You're such a loser". What is it about losing that is so terrible? Think about it with me for a few moments.

The first analogy that comes to mind is a race. Someone wins and the rest become losers. But, just a minute - in any race there are lots of runners, thousands in the case of marathons. So that must mean that there are very few winners and the vast majority of us are losers. Are we to be scorned because we are not amongst the tiny fraternity of winners?

You tell me that I've got it wrong; the term, as used, is much more about life than any competition. A loser is someone who just isn't making a decent job of his life. He's losing in the game of life. But who's winning then? Am I supposed to assume that the winners are the millionaires and the magnates, the stars of the entertainment industry, the grossly overpaid sportsmen, the rich and famous indeed? And are you one of them? If you are, then welcome to my page, have a look around and make me an offer of publication (don't forget the film rights). If you're not, it seems that I must welcome you to the club for the masses - the losers.

Oh wait, maybe I've got it wrong. Perhaps the term is supposed to mean "one who fails consistently". But fails at what? It can't be money and success, we've already looked at that one. So does it mean achieving a certain happiness or contentment? And I'm expected to condemn that person because he hasn't achieved that state of nirvana as yet? Pardon me for thinking it, but on that score we're all losers. Although I do admit to being pretty happy and I'm fairly content with my life.

Whichever way we look at it, it seems that almost all of us are losers. But there's nothing wrong with that. Losing is an important part of life. What was that famous quote - the man who never failed at something never achieved anything? You see, it's all about trying and if you try, sometimes you're going to fail. We all experience failure sometimes, even the mythical winners. And it's not something to be ashamed of; it's what makes us human.

So don't call others losers. It's meaningless - you're just saying that they're human. We are, in fact, all failing to win. The double meaning is quite intentional, I assure you.


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