The Games We Play

Or don’t play any more.

The boards and cards change, as do the faces around the table. The notes and replacement pieces in the boxes testify to all the games we played and the memories we created.

We played Battleship and Guess Who? But those games could never be enough. We were never just two and honestly, it wasn’t fun that way.

And when we tried Life and Risk, we found that it either took too much time to set up or never ended. We didn’t need that when we had so much to do and live for.

Connect Four was good for ending arguments, and checkers was a great way to start them anew.

We used to play Uno. Though the cards were brightly colored and juvenile compared to the decks in my uncles’ hands, I felt we were on our way to be like them.

The game we still play is Clue. For some of us, it’s still about winning. For others, it’s about the mystery. Sometimes, it is about others losing. It has something for five of us willing to play. And we play.

Cousins, friends, and siblings with our cards fanned, and our poker faces ready. When did we last play together? Did we not realise the stakes were not who won? But who lost when we never played again?