When I was little, I remember always playing a peculiar kind of game. This game was not uncommon in the area where I grew up but it was common for boys rather than for girls. I, not wanting to feel inferior to anyone, much less a boy, indulged in the game until I met my match. The game was a simple bet game or what you would call a dare game. The only factor that made it look like a bet was the fact that snacks and money were at stake.
I was ready to confront anyone who challenged me to the dare game and for the most part I usually won. I won the snacks of the other kids who were naughty enough to dare me. I laughed while they cried, even as I chewed their snacks and fruits or whatever thing they had bet with me for. The game was mostly centered around academics and I was a pro at anything "book related (thanks to my dad) .
The day I met my match was epic. As usual I would go out to meet with the kids of my neighborhood and then eargerly await the time when we would bet but that fateful day, the new kid won and I lost all my snacks. I cried for hours, wanted a re-match but I had nothing to stake and so I left with my tail between my legs...defeated. I never joined in that so called bet game again.
Gambling is not just a social vice, it is an economic issue or rather it has its consequences on the finances of an individual. A person who gambles will hardly have any financial goals or achievements in life. The belief that staking a certain amount would bring in triple the staked amount is false. Human wants is insatiable and when greed is the driver of that want, nothing satisfies.
I wonder how those who gamble sleep at night. Think about it, the money won is at the expense of other people's losses and you think it is worth celebrating? I know for a fact that money won from gambling does not satisfy nor does is it useful to the one who won it.
I heard about a certain commercial bus driver who was lured into gambling by one of his friends. At the start he only staked small amounts and he was winning. Then he began to increase his stake amounts and he kept winning. So one day, feeling brave, he decided to stake the money he and his wife had saved up to buy a piece of land but unfortunately he lost all the money and that drove a wedge in his marriage.
Asides from the losses incured in gambling the debt accrued and accumulated over time can make one to lose their minds. Due to the urge of wanting to win big, many people might decide to borrow money from loan sharks, promising to pay back after they win the so called huge amount but unfortunately, many of them don't win and then the next thing is that they are being chased by loan sharks here and there. They run away, stay away from home and their families simply to avoid being caught.
The most dangerous effect of all is the fact that gambling is very addictive. Once hooked, it will take the grace of God and much determination to desist from it. Gambling is not a good thing to indulge in as it destroys the sanity and sound reasoning of those who indulge in it .
Gambling is also a pollutant capable of ruining the lives of many . Desisting from gambling is a good way of keeping the planet clean.
Thank you alll for reading. This is my entry to the #octoberinleo initiative day 10.
Images used are mine