I had been looking forward to Chinese New Year since the start of the year.
Spending quality time with family and friends, enjoying delicious home-cooked meals, and of course, playing card games.
It was a time-honored tradition that I had enjoyed since I was a child, and this year was no different.
On the second day of the festive period, I decided to spend a few hours playing in between with some friends.
It was a game I had been playing since I started gambling, and I was confident that I was pretty good at it.
But this time, I was wrong. Very wrong.
The game started out innocently enough. We were all having a good time, and I was doing well. We started raising our calls on the amount inside the pot when we were dealt with good cards.
The amount in the pot soon grew to almost $2,500 as all of us kept getting cards which were outside and getting ‘tiang’.
I was then dealt with an ACE and KING and I thought it was a good time to recoup. I called the pot and unluckily got an ACE.
This meant that I had to pay up double.
I had to pay up $5,000, and I did not have so much money with me.
My friend was gracious enough to offer me a loan so that the game could continue and I reluctantly accepted.
I certainly never expected to lose so much. I felt embarrassed, and I was afraid of what my family and friends would think about me playing more than my means.
It felt like my world had come crashing down around me. I felt like I had let everyone down, and I felt like I had let myself down.
I had been so confident and yet I had failed so spectacularly.
My friend was understanding, but I knew that I would have to pay him back. I had no idea how I was going to do it, but I knew I had to try.
I was constantly worrying about how I was going to come up with the money, and it was a struggle to keep my head above water.
I learned my lesson, and I vow never to play in between again. I had found out the hard way that gambling was not something to be taken lightly, and that it could have serious consequences.
I will never forget the feeling of despair and shame that I felt after losing that money. It was a hard-earned lesson, and one I will never forget.
Now I have to work doubly hard, to make up for the amount that I’ve lost.