In the Zombies COD game (that I've become semi-addicted to), there
is a gun that is the ultimate problem solver.
It's called the ray gun.
The ray gun sits in a chest that you need a certain amount of points
to unlock - and once the chest is open, there is no guarantee that
you'll get the ray gun as the weapons inside spin around in a sort
of lottery fashion (sometimes landing on a lame maltov cocktail
maker or a crappy magnum 357).
But if you get the ray gun, you will know of its power.
Shooting streams of green fury and decimating zombies on contact,
it is the room-clearer of weapons. It is the finishing move and if it's
used well, it can help you to make it very far in the game.
There is no ray gun in life. All we have are a lottery of options
and we choose the best that we can. Sometimes, I wish that I'd
done things differently. I wish I'd been more aggressive about a
career in writing right out of university. I wish I'd gone to school
for journalism 8 years ago. I wish I'd secured people in the
same town that would play music with me and work at the craft
of being performers for years. I wish I'd not racked up debt so
quickly.
But we all must find ways to get that ray gun - whatever it
might be. A job. A partner. A lover. An ally. An opportunity.
And the naysayers will feel its creative and green-glowing power.
I don't know when I'll get it - but I have the feeling that I'll get
that ray gun. I've been to the chest enough times. It's only a
matter of time.
