The Game Was Never Officiated Fair And That Was The Point

I never planned on having to explain injustice through a basketball game.

But there we were.

He looked at me confused, frustrated, trying to make sense of rules that didn’t apply evenly and asked questions no kid should have to ask so early:

Why did the other team start the game with points already on the scoreboard?

Why did the shot I made from behind the NBA three-point line only count as two but their simple layup counted as four?

Why do the referees let everything slide for them, but call the game extra tight on me?

Why did you get a technical for defending me,
but the other coach ran onto the court, knocked me down to stop me from scoring and got patted on the back?

Why did the referee blow his whistle to stop my team from scoring, when we had executed it to perfection and scored easily on the opponent?

Then I was left there thinking that underneath all those questions was the real one he truly wanted to ask:

“Why isn’t this fair?”

That’s when I realized something heavy and holy at the same time:

This wasn’t just about basketball.
This was about life.

THE GAME HAS DIFFERENT RULES AND PRETENDING OTHERWISE ONLY CONFUSES YOU

Some people start the game ahead.

They don’t earn the points, they inherit them.
They don’t hustle for access, it’s handed to them.
They don’t have to be twice as disciplined, twice as patient, twice as prepared because the margin for error was built into their starting position.

Then when no one explains that truth honestly, you start blaming yourself.

You think:

Maybe I’m not good enough.
Maybe I didn’t do enough.
Maybe I’m missing something.

No.

You’re just playing on a court that wasn’t designed for you to win easily.

SO I TOLD HIM A STORY

I told him about Charlie.

Not the polished version people like to remember but the one who literally pulled his golden ticket out of the mud.

I told him:

Some kids in the factory had everything.

Unlimited resources.
No real obstacles.
Parents who cleared the way.
Rules that bent in their favor.

This left every single one of them believing that advantage guaranteed victory.

But it didn’t.

It led to entitlement.
Shortcuts.
Collapse.

Because when you don’t have to develop character, discipline, or patience you don’t know what to do when the system finally stops carrying you.

THE GOLDEN TICKET ISN’T GIVEN IT’S EARNED

I told him this:

“You weren’t chosen to start ahead.
You were chosen to end strong.”

Your ticket doesn’t come from privilege, it comes from perseverance.

It comes from trusting the process when the scoreboard lies.
It comes from playing through unfair calls.
It comes from staying disciplined when distractions scream your name.

What about the Oompa Loompas, who constantly say what did I do???

They’re just noise.

They exist to pull your attention off the mission.

But if you keep your focus.
If you keep your integrity.
If you keep moving forward even when the rules feel rigged.

You don’t just win.

You bring everyone with you.

THE FATHER WAS ALWAYS THERE

Here’s the part I needed him to understand most:

Even when the game looked fixed. 
Even when the refs missed the calls.
Even when the system leaned against him.

His father was still there.

Guiding him.
Correcting him.
Believing in him.

Victory doesn’t always look like the scoreboard in the moment.

Sometimes victory is learning how to win without becoming bitter.
How to stay humble without becoming small.
How to endure without losing yourself.

ONE DAY IT WILL ALL MAKE SENSE

I told him this and I’ll tell you too:

Keep living.
Keep trusting.
Keep doing the right thing when it doesn’t immediately pay off.

Because one day, the same system that tested you, will become the evidence that proves you.

So, when that door opens and when that golden ticket finally reveals what it was always for, you won’t step into the top alone.

You’ll turn around and bring your entire family with you.

That’s the difference.

That’s the design.

That’s the reward for those who learned how to win without the rules ever being fair.

So we walked off that court together and from that moment on, it was never about the scoreboard.

It was about domination and leaving no doubt.

Because when the rules are rigged:

You don’t play to win by their margins.
You play to win so decisively that the scoreboard becomes irrelevant.

You don’t just beat them.
You make them question why they ever thought the advantage mattered.

You make them run away instead of stating to face you, because they know they can’t win as you’ve clearly got them in checkmate!

Not defeated.
Not bitter.

But clear.

Clear about what the game really is.
Clear about who we really are.
Clear about what we’re really building.

Then when we get to the top. 

We’ll remember:

Every unfair call.
Every rigged scoreboard.
Every moment they thought we’d quit.

Not to hold grudges, but to make sure no kid after us ever has to pull their golden ticket out of the mud alone.

That’s the inheritance.
That’s the factory.

That’s what happens when you don’t just win 
but when you win so thoroughly that you rewrite what winning even means.

You don’t need fair.

You become undeniable.

You dominate to leave no doubt.

#KeepOnLivingAndOneDayItWillAllMakeSense
#TheOompaLoompasAreOnlyADistraction
#YouHaveTheGoldenTicket
#DominateToLeaveNoDoubt