Leap Into Life
Capture the flag is an age old classic and favorite neighborhood game, but the game didn't really become real to me until my neighborhood started playing it in the late summer evenings.
Now yes, I had played the game before- you know, in PE or at recess when I was younger. I had read the Percy Jackson series and had seen the movies; my sister and I knew the capture the flag scene by heart. But I hadn't understood the thrill of it, the fun of it untill I started playing it, for real. I wish I could say it was spontaneous. That some cool, early summer evening someone started knocking on doors and asking if the neighbors (kids) wanted to play capture the flag. That a group formed behind me as I knocked on everyone's door. Unfortunately, it didn't happen like that. I'll give my sister credit for the idea, I drafted the email, and my mom sent it out. A small group formed outside our house that might. And we played. For hours. Only then did I understand the thrill that came with the game. It was competitive and strategetic. Everyone had different skills and they helped the team win (or loose). Anyway, why bring along a pen? Because capture the flag doesn't come down to how fast you can run or how good you can hide. It comes down to ingenuousness, to simplicity. While stuck in jail (sitting on the curb of the road) with two teammates, an idea popped into my head. So yes, it was from Percy Jackson (you've probably noticed I'm a fan of the series), but whatever. I thought, "if only I had a pen! I could write a note on this water bottle wrapper and maybe they'd see it." See, if only I had brought along a writing utensil. But that's not the point, the point is that we were thinking. That we were working together. The game ended shortly after, but it was not before we had tried writing it with grass and paper rips. And the best part of the game comes after you've played it enough to see what's in front of you clearly. To see the strategy and, as if it's happening in front of your eyes, how something should play out. The question is: do you see clearly when it comes to strategy? Only a true player, one with the courage to use weird, ingenious ideas, ever will.
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