Friday, March 4, 2011

Hide and Seek: (Yet) A(nother) Metaphor for Life


“Ready or not, here I come!” These six words signal the start of a new game of hide and seek. The players can be old or young; however, older players play differently than younger players. The age gap in the game of hide-and-seek translates to the age gap in the real world. 

The younger seekers seem to have a different agenda compared to the older seekers. Younger seekers look everywhere to find their hiders, from the most obvious hiding place to the smallest crevice or corner in a room. Despite the stereotype that children are incredibly impatient, most young players will be thorough in an attempt to “win” this game. This concept does not hold true for older players. Older players are supposedly logical in their approach. They believe that in order to stay hidden the longest, the hiders will look for difficult and unusual hiding places. So these smallest crevices, where most people do not fit, and these obvious hiding places, which would most likely be avoided, are overlooked. They are logical, but not thorough. They do not take the time to look everywhere in order to find someone. This idea of thoroughness holds true in the real world. Children take their time when they do things. They may not be skilled at what they do, but they are thorough when they do this. Older people, especially teenagers, believe that everything is a completion grade. As long as it is finished, it is fine, even if it is not rechecked for errors. There is always a sense of urgency for older people, so they lose the thoroughness that they had as a child.

The hiding strategy of older and younger players also differs. Young players love the thrill of hiding. Whenever the seeker passes them, many inevitably let out a squeak of a laugh, which normally leads to their quick finding. When these youthful hiders are found, they may complain, but usually they are just ready to hide again. They do not care because they tricked the seeker. However, older players have a different goal: win. They are completely emotionless, even when the seeker passes them. But they outburst when they are found asking how could they have found them or that they somehow cheated. They are mad because they missed their goal and lost. This is true in life. Kids love the thrill of life, even if they fail. Kids will always be optimistic because they are always entertained by everything. Adults and teens react to failure by many ways. Some implode emotionally, while others become completely enraged at themselves and others around them.

The effects of time on people are shown very well in hide-and-seek, and these effects are eventually translated into life. Children are more happy-go-lucky than adults, who have a violent impulse at times. Children have no sense of time, while adults need to have everything done quickly. Sometimes, kids do know better than adults and even teenagers. Sometimes it is important to let out our inner child even if it is just during a game of hide-and-seek.

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