Losing the Fire

The other day I came across a little video on social media of two guys siting outside, and the one turns to the other and says, "I just feel like I'm losing my fire, you know." To which the other guy nods sympathetically, and the first guys continues, "I used to have this raging inferno inside me for life. Like a bonfire of passion to embrace the world, chase my dreams, and get all that I could out of life, right?" And the first guy, still nodding says, "Yeah, yeah." And the first guy goes on, "And now, now it's like all I have is a tiny spark, buried deep inside, like a little candle guttering in the wind that I have to shelter from the wind of life. I have to stay inside, not go out or the wind will just snuff it out." And the clip cuts out with the second guy still nodding.

I identified with this on so many levels. I wanted to mention it in regards to gaming.

Let's face it, making it from this:

To this ... 

Is not a bridge too far, and many of us went from pre-teen to teenage/college gaming fairly reliably. But to make it onwards to this:

Or even this ...

Can be a much harder journey. Time, careers, relationships, stress, responsibilities and much, much more vie for time with your desire and will to sustain a gaming group. My journey here was easiest with my students first and my children next. But if those avenues evaporate as your children grow up and move on, you might find yourself struggling to hit that last phase ...

If you have managed to do that, seriously count your blessings, and accept my deepest admiration. 

And I'm not saying it is some impossibly difficult achievement. Though it may be harder for some than others, it is doable. I am my own worse enemy in this regard. The real challenge is to kindle the fire sufficiently to make it happen. Don't sneeze to hard, you might snuff my candle.