Spades
1) My job sucks the joy out of my soul on a daily basis
2) Relatively homogenous nationwide culture
3) Bogans
4) Prams
5) Cost of Living
6) Boring news programs
7) Lack of local meteorologists
8) Serious lack of tacos
9) Not belonging
10) Seasonal incongruity of holidays
11) Faded sense of adventure and discovery
12) Grocery store locations
13) Hugh Jackman
Diamonds
1) I work with a wonderful team of people
2) A great network of friends all across the country, a place to say in every Capital City
3) Career Opportunities
4) Sales Meetings
5) Decent health care that is not linked to my job, so I don’t feel trapped
6) Polite school children
7) Koalas
8) Not being afraid of the Police
9) Readily available and clean public toilets
10) Socially endorsed binge drinking
11) The Opera House and Harbour Bridge
12) 4 Weeks Annual Leave
13) Diminutive names
Clubs
1) Gun Violence
2) Dissipated relationships
3) Lack of healthcare
4) Rednecks
5) Fiscally insolvent national policies
6) Presidential campaigns
7) Stubborn stupidity
8) Dissipated relationships
9) Smog
10) Political Lobbies
11) Soccer Moms
12) Recession
13) Job hunting
Hearts
1) Halloween
2) Watching football during normal operating hours
3) Friends with history
4) The National Park System
5) Redwood Trees
6) Affordable and more frequent family visits
7) Localities with distinct personalities
8) The Star Spangled Banner
9) Corona Light
10) Mexican food
11) Taco Bell
12) Affordable Homeownership
…no matter what order the cards may land, the final card is always the same and she trumps them all:
My mother raised me to be an independent woman – but I am not. My existence is contextual, defined by my relationships and my impact on the world. She taught me to think for myself and made it very clear that none of my decisions ever be made solely to please her. In this regard, I am sure I have been successful. So I am being careful with myself, checking and double checking my motivation, testing to see if her present vulnerability is appropriately weighted against my own desire to be closer to her.
I survey my friends, colleagues, and acquaintances. Australians in general and Adelaideans in particular have a strong attachment to home and family. Though most wander, nearly all return home to be near their parents, some to take care of them, some to be taken care of. Any regrets? None - the most important and best decision they ever made…
All decisions are merely junctions and very few lead to real dead ends, save for those that end in genuine death. Yet, when facing a decision, especially a big one, I tend to think in terms of finality and inevitability, as if the consequences become destiny. This is, of course ridiculous, as each decision, each junction leads only to a new section of the map of life, where there will be more intersections, more opportunities, more decisions.
Sometimes, not all the roads are on the map. Sometimes, the map is wrong. Sometimes, you can’t see the next road until you turn the corner and walk a few paces. Sometimes, the streets aren’t marked.
Sometimes, you just need to follow your hearts.
