Snakes and Ladders originated in India as a game based on morality called Vaikuntapaali or Paramapada Sopanam (the ladder to salvation) (wikipedia)

You’re right at the top.

You’re almost there.

Only a few steps to go.

And then you hit that damn snake, and you’re knocked all the way down to the bottom.

As a kid, it was just a fun game. But when I think about it now, I realize just how close it resembles real life.

Occasionally we hit a ladder, of good luck or fortune, and up we go.

Occasionally, we hit a snake of bad luck or misfortune, and we experience a setback.

The problem now is that each and every day, we hear about more and more people near the finish line and then suddenly, out-of-nowhere, they hit that big mother of a snake. You know the one I’m talking about, the one that knocks you right back almost to the beginning.

You might as well start over, or give up entirely. You can’t catchup.

It seems to me, though, the actual game board has changed. There are more snakes than ever before, especially in that last row. There might be the odd spot here and there with an opening, and if you make the perfect roll of the dice, you might just make it. If you roll anything but a 4, you’re screwed.

It’s pretty risky to place everything on the roll of the dice, don’t ya think?

The new option is to just not play the game anymore. I’m not.