"Wait until tomorrow," we overheard one table game dealer tell his players. "People will have all the cash they got as presents."
But we were there on Wednesday night, hoping to make money player 1-3 cash game poker. We went on a waiting list, and received one of those "your seat is ready now" electric plates you might get at restaurants.
We walked around for a long time, stopping to watch table games. Finally after about 30 minutes, we decided to sit down at Ultimate Texas Hold 'em to bide our time and perhaps make a gain. And wouldn't you know - during our first hand at the table, the notifier went off.
We had good cards in that one hand, but the dealer beat us and we lost $20. With $40 in chips left and $40 in our wallet, we went back to the poker room desk.
"Minimum $100," the attendant told us. That standard hasn't changed, and we came prepared to offer that $100. But that one hand elsewhere in the casino had changed everything.
"I played one hand over there, lost $20, so I only have $80," we admitted. We could have walked over to the ATM, withdrew $50 more and been ready to play. But instead, we handed our electronic gizmo over and said "thanks, but no thanks."
We wound up losing $70 back at the Ultimate Texas Hold 'em table. But we learned quite a lesson without even sitting down. It was a lesson in patience -- waiting even longer than you might think, to obtain what you really wanted.
"Patience is a virtue," we often hear. It's a helpful trait to have while playing poker -- folding lesser hands while waiting for good cards to come. And we think it's valuable in all aspects of life.
A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense. - Proverbs 19:11
Some players bet big right after losing a tough hand, saying they're "trying to win my money back." Sometimes that works; sometimes they dig themselves an even deeper hole. That's where patience needs to govern our play -- as it should everything we do.
Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm because the Lord's coming is near. - James 5:7-8
We live in an area where "winter wheat" grows. Farmers know better than to harvest it during winter. Seeds lie in the ground, absorbing moisture from rain and snow until plants begin to shoot up in spring.
Maybe you have to develop patience by telling yourself to be patient -- over and over again, if necessary. That would have made all the difference for us this week. We might have won big in the poker room -- but then again, we might have lost our entire $100. We'll never know in this life. May you develop the patience that brings a good harvest, in poker or elsewhere.
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