Winners and Losers

 A casual look at the world reveals that there is competition everywhere. This is evident in everyday life – ranging from games to work. There seems to be one mad rush everywhere we try to “succeed”.  Often it does not matter to us who perishes while we succeed or “win”. It does not matter who “loses” as long as it is not we who lose. This mad rush in every area of life divides the world into winners and losers. Almost everyone is categorized as one or the other, to be admired or despised; to be befriended or ostracized; to be emulated or avoided. One is prompted to ask: is winning and losing really important? Is being a winner or loser all there is to life?

If we listen to stories by so-called successful people, we see that not all of them consider themselves “winner”. Frequently, there have been cases where people who have been labeled successful businessmen have lost their families through divorce; or have lost their health through overworking to gather wealth. Can we call such people winners? The people probably do not think so. One such person is Elvis Presley. In the world of pop music, he was “The King”. A definite winner; but alas, his personal life was far from successful. He lost his family, his health and died miserably from a drug overdose. His end was pitiful, yet he had vast wealth at his disposal. One is sure that the “King” would have gladly traded all his wealth for a loving family life.

Of course, this is not to say that it is good or even acceptable to be a “loser”. No one should be poor or a failure in life. It is of no credit to anyone if he were to live from hand to mouth, or be homeless or be sick or unsuccessful in family life. In fact with all the joy and happiness we see in the world around us it is an insult to humanity that there should be people who are poor or “losers” in life. However, the fact remains that not many people who consider themselves “losers” actually are. Many people who call themselves losers because they did not win what they set out to are winners – if only they could take honest looks at their situations. For instance, people who come in second place in Olympic events bursts into tears – apparently because they did not become number one. Can they be considered losers? Surely it is a sign of success that they are in second place – in comparison to many others. They should simply congratulate the person in first place and still consider themselves as winners to some degree.

Recently there was an amusing advertisement. A lady observes that there are only twelve supermodels in the world and two billion women who are not. Surely, they are not all losers; then again they are not without beauty. None of us have to winners or losers. We should be happy enough to be ordinary humans in this beautiful world and find happiness in small things, like the smile of a child or the fragrance of a flower or the smoothness of a stone on the beach. Life is certainly not only for those considered “winners” by popular standards; nor is life to be excluded for so-called “losers”. Life is for all of us. We do not have to follow the popular tendency to label people as “winners and losers”. Indeed a loser makes a winner!  As someone lose which make other win ;-)