Snake n' Ladder

A simple poem.

Snake n’ Ladder

There are 8 snakes and 8 ladders

In a 100 block long snake n ladder.

Though it seemed to be many fewer

Ladders are there on the board.

It’s not easy to win.

Neither too hard.

You should mean it, in every-

Throw of dice, you should believe.

Just like life, there are no shortcuts to 100.

You’ve to play fairly.

The snakes, your mistakes.

The ladders, your gains.

No one will judge you by the snakes,

If you’re gonna make it to 100.

No one will care your ladders

If you’re gonna lose.

Every turn is a game changer here.

Everyone wants 6’s and 5’s.

But when the right time comes,

You should play for 1.

That’s snake n’ ladder buddy,

That’s life.

Author's Note

Waiting eagerly for your reviews.

Reviews

[Eric Pudalov]

As you said, it's a deceptively simple poem, but I like it. I especially like the lines in the second to last stanza:

"Everyone wants 6's and 5's.
But when the right time comes,
You should play for 1."

It's been a long time since I've played the actual game, but regardless, I think I understand what you mean. You can't take shortcuts in life, and you can't always hope to be a high-roller. Plus, it's that number, 1, that's the most important. I think we forget that, in ultimate reality, all things are one. (Perhaps that isn't what you meant, but that's how I read it.)

Now, as I may have said in a previous review, I'm kind of a "Grammar Nazi," so to speak. In the first stanza, I think lines 3 and 4 might sound better a little like this: "Though there seemed to be many fewer/Ladders on the board." I actually had to look this up! It's tricky when to know if you should say "many" or "much," but apparently, if you're talking about something you can count, you would say "many" instead of "much."

All grammar nitpicking aside, I still enjoyed the poem itself, and I agree with what you said in your profile - "simple words can combine to form complex meaning." Keep up the good work.

[The ArK]

Thank u Eric for this detailed, helping review.

[Eric Pudalov]

You're very welcome!!

[Avinash]

Very true. That's how the life is. Good analogy and great deptiction.

[The ArK]

thank you Avi.

[Vidya Bacchus]

This was a wise write my friend.Life is sometimes just a series of ups and downs.A toss of the dice ,a twist of fate .Nicely penned :)

[The ArK]

Thanx Vidya

[Vidya Bacchus]

You are welcome :)

[Anand Sehgal]

No one will judge you by the snakes,
If you’re gonna make it to 100.
No one will care your ladders
If you’re gonna lose.

super-awesome lines dear. very thoughtful piece :)
***********************************************************************************************************************************************

[The ArK]

Thank you my friend

[Saddam]

Every turn is a game changer here.
Everyone wants 6’s and 5’s.
But when the right time comes,
You should play for 1.....

Interesting and deep messaging poetry. Great......

[The ArK]

Thanks for reviewing SSADD

[Utkarsh Singh]

bhai never ever counted that there are 8 snakes n 8 ladder ......:D ..lolz .......btw nice poem ........like it very much ......the way you compared life with a silly game we used to play in our free time .......such a deep meaning ........keep it up buddy ........keep writing ....keep sending me more .......

[The ArK]

Thanks bro. I'm glad that you've time to play snake n ladder besides the computer games. I really miss that game.

[Sami Khalil]

A splendid read and write with a deep message. Bravo...............

[one sky]

Simple. Cool. Philosophical.
Glad you have this kind of analogy between life and that board game. Know that "Snakes and Ladders" is a game of chance...just like life.

Clever!

[The ArK]

thank u Margaux

[Rachelle]

Destiny beckons us in this game called Life
Every step a choice towards triumph or strife.
The bumps and potholes along the road
Rising and plunging as our tale unfolds.
Beyond reaching the goal are lessons to be learned
Rewards come only after character is earned.
Integrity and justice are slowly defined
Compassion and conscience are nuggets to be mined.
So play the game that Life has offered you
Ignite your flame and let your light shine through.

[Rachelle]

Thank you for the inspiration.

[The ArK]

Thank you for reading and WELL DONE!

[Rachelle]

Thanks for provoking the write, ARK!