… my little one has a number of pencil cases full of different writing stuff. I hope she has not inherited my hoarding tendency. But don’t panic! We don’t have to get the cameras in just yet. Things are still under control. But seriously we have all sort. One case is just packed full of erasers, I am beginning to think we might need to start a small eraser selling business. I never knew erasers come in all shape and form. Some are heart shaped, pretty and pink, some very colourful like a rainbow, some smell like bubble gum, others shaped like a koala with removable head and tail, some look like something you would put in your mouth, some sparkle, some light up, some are just simply plain, all kinds basically.
Recently I have just been reacquainted with an old love of mine, Sudoku! I use to love Sudoku, but life took over and there was no time for such luxuries, but in recent times I have come to respect that life is for living and doing some of those things you truly love. So I found my way back to Sudoku. Times have truly moved on, and now there are Sudoku Apps and you can do Sudoku on your phone, tablet, computer etc and I tried all of these. But I will like to submit, that nothing beats paper Sudoku, call me old fashion if you will. The real taste of this pasttime to me, is sweating it out with your tired, folded around the edges puzzle book. Any Sudoku lover, worthy of the title knows the two tools you must not be without, a good pencil and a decent eraser. You can actually get away with an average grade pencil, but you must not compromise on the eraser other wise you are are letting yourself in for a frustrating, brain torturing session. All evidence of indiscretion must be erased away to present a smart finish.
The thing with Sudoku is that unless you are a genius, which most of us mere mortal are not, it is a case of probability for most of the boxes. So you are in the ‘it could be a 6, or an 8, maybe even a 9, well a 2 could even go there’ frame of mind as you approach the boxes and you have to squeeze all those probable numbers in the tiny boxes. Now you see why you need a good pencil. But if you ever have any intention of finishing the puzzle you have to go through the arduous task of working out all the wrong probable numbers and rubbing them off and this is where a good eraser comes into its own.
I tried borrowing some of the fanciful erasers from my little one, but they were absolutely useless. All they did was look pretty, smell pretty, taste pretty, light up and do all kind of silly things but when it came to do the real job of erasing they could hardly get rid of anything, they were no where to be found, seriously lacking.
In his pencil case, he had also inherited a couple of my good old erasers. The boring type, plain white/off white rectangular ones, it does not look pretty, does not claim to be anything but an eraser. It has also be ‘around the block’, travelled the world, it has experience on it’s side. It does what it says on the tin, it erases! There is also the bad boy of erasers, the 2 sided tipped edges one, one side is blue, the other side is reddish brown, once it hits the paper, there is no sign of any indiscretion, flaw, error or probability, it is all gone! These are the top guns required to make Sudoku a smooth experience, not any of the flimsy sissy erasers.
These erasers have been there, seen it and done it, they have experience on their side. Some ‘bad boys’ of erasers will even life pen writing without damaging the paper! In life this is what we need, people that come into our life like the ‘bad boy’ of erasers. Not ‘bad’ in the negative destructive sense, but people that help get the job done, they have experience, they are not necessarily all singing, all dancing like the kaola removable head eraser but they are Kosher, like the blue and reddish brown erasers they bring stability and maturity to our lifes. They help erase trauma and confusion, they use the experience of their journey to bring peace and harmony to our life, to erase unsuitable probabilities.
The eraser we need might be tired around the edges, done the journey of life, but it is the one that can erase the pain. Choose wisely!
Beautiful Ivory 