Appreciation post: The guy at the Portland game cafe who taught me how to lose

I was at Guardian Games last month, trying out a new deck builder with a friend. I got super mad when my whole plan fell apart on turn five... I was about to flip the table, honestly. This older guy at the next table, who was running a game of Root for six people, just looked over and said, 'The fun is in the mess, not the win.' He then spent maybe ten minutes after his game ended showing me and my friend how to spot cool moves our opponents made, even when they beat us. It changed how I play everything now... I look for those little smart plays instead of just getting upset. Has anyone else had a total stranger at a game night give you advice that stuck?

3 comments

3 Comments

jamie_adams10d ago

What about learning from a kid's simple joy?

daniel_gonzalez10d ago

Learning from a kid's joy? I could use a lesson in that lol

angelarivera10d ago

My nephew spent twenty minutes yesterday just watching ants carry a crumb across the sidewalk. He was totally amazed by it. It made me realize I haven't looked at anything that closely in years. There's something about that kind of focus that we totally lose as adults.