Everything I'm doing is Failing

The myth of good dice and rolling well

When I started playing TTRPGs in 2017, I noticed the phenomenon of “dice superstition.” In the game, we make up stories and fiction in our minds and then roll dice to determine the fate of the character’s actions.

The funny thing is that dice are random - and this means we can’t control the outcome. We roll and accept the number. So, if the dice roll high then our characters win, but if the dice rolls low…we make up a grim outcome.

Either way, the point of the game is to describe a situation, response and then interpret the dice number by describing an outcome. It is an excellent exercise in imagination.

However, it still tickles me every time when a player consistently rolls low and states something of the following:

My dice are cursed!

There are many rituals involved in cleansing the dice; putting them in a “dice jail”, setting them underneath your pillow at night, or blowing on them. I have even heard of some people buying loads of dice just so they can cycle through the blessed and cursed ones.

At the end of the day, it is true that our job in the game is not to “roll well” because in this case, there is no skill. It is random. But what we can do is “interpret well.” In other words, we ask “what does this mean?”

Real life can be incredibly blessed, and of course, at times seems cursed. I know there is a time and place simply to accept our experiences for what they are. However, part of the gift I bring to the world is helping others interpret what the experience means. The interpretation of our life can provide a massive shift in perspective. This opens our minds to new understanding. And (fingers crossed) this opens us up to new pathways to experience.

Call me superstitious, but is it more superstitions that blowing on dice to make you roll better?

We can interpret our experience to mean something and in this, we control our narrative. This is particularly useful for our health when our experiences hurt.

I hope you roll high in life, but chances are it is a balance between failures and successes. But more so, I hope you learn to interpret your experiences through a worldview of heroism and glory.

May your story continue!

Speaking of dice and failure, here is a homeschool production from Sojourners Awake! I hope you enjoy it!