I was recently staying with a companion in the cottage which my brother and I have inherited from our parents. In one of the drawers we came across an old board game called Sorry. This brought back memories of childhood for me – my family often played this game during holidays. Of course, my companion and I had to play.
The aim of the game is to move four pieces around the board from one’s ‘start’ to one’s ‘home’ place. The moves are controlled by cards, so it is mostly a game of chance. In various ways, though, one can knock the opponent’s pieces back to their starting place. When this happens, the rules of the game require one to say ‘sorry'.
Playing this game again reminded me of two things. Firstly, one’s fortunes can turn very rapidly and unexpectedly. One might be almost home and dry and then find oneself right back at the start. Conversely, things can be going very badly, and seem utterly hopeless, when a short run of good luck lands one in a much better situation… A good lesson for life!
The other reminder has to do with happiness and remorse and authenticity. When one knocks an opponent’s piece back to their start, usually advancing one’s own piece in the process, one does not tend to feel sorry at all. This is a woeful consequence of living life in a relative way, always comparing oneself with others. One’s happiness is also measured in a relative way, so there is not much remorse when one gains at another’s expense. And there is a subtle satisfaction at seeing someone else suffering. It takes a lot of inner work to get beyond this macabre aspect of our personalities…
As children, my brothers and I were too authentic to be able to say sorry when we were overflowing with glee. So, in our family, we instead said ‘soggo’, and that has become the name of the game to this day.
