Empathy and a Little Poker

I thought I could be empathetic of the feelings the young girls family was going through but how can I truly understand what they are going through. I haven’t had one of my children die tragically. Sympathy is a more realistic term for how I felt as I walked down the receiving line, shaking the hands of relatives I’ve never met. As I approached her mother and step-father I couldn’t help but stroke the hair of my 5 year-old son as he waited impatiently for us to finish. I gave her mother a hug and attempted to choke back the tears that wanted to fall free flowing from my puffy eyes. A hand shake between her step-father and I because that is what men do.

Standing in front of the casket of a young woman who almost made 18 years of age is hard to do. Her bloated face caused by the embalming fluid doesn’t do her justice. The agonizing loneliness that fills the hearts of the endless lines of people streaming into this room to pay their respects can’t be described. The pain of loss is individual and can only be consoled.

M and B were happy to be away from the morbid surroundings. There was food and drink down stairs and this was now a time to spend with their friends. L found her friend, the deceased girl’s cousin, to spend time with her friend in her time of need. The Poker Enthusiast parents went down stairs and socialized with friends and family while B tried to eat cookies for dinner. Life must move on and food must be the first step to recovery.

As we walked the two blocks to our parking space, the funeral home parking lot was full, I thought about how my life has been changed by the deaths of family and friends over the years and realized that all things come to an end. And though death has marked my life yet again I will go on. The world doesn’t stop and wait for your return.

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I didn’t play any poker lat night but I did watch JJ, surf and worldpoker05 play for a while. I wasn’t in the right mindset to play and just wanted to veg out. They all cashed in their respective tourneys so I guess I’m good luck. It was nice to look at the different styles of play as each of them had different approaches. They all did the job all be it with different endings.

JJ played a semi loose aggressive style that accumulated chips for him only to get hit hard near the bubble. He made the cash but didn’t get as deep as was hoped. Surf played a mixed style game that was tight and varied. Some luck box action was in store but it was clear his intention was to win the SNG. Worldpoker05 played as tight as I’ve seen anyone play. He took advantage of that image as the bubble approached and stole pots to maintain his chip stack until the bubble burst in his SNG. Three cashes with three styles.

Probably no poker tonight but Mookieness should be in store for Wednesday.