We have a big cuddle blanket on our couch. It’s massive. Two by two meters or so. In the winter, we use it every night, and every morning, I fold it back into shape.
To wrestle this unwieldy piece of cloth into a square, I take two of the corners, overlay them, and fold it in half. But then I’ve still got a long, if slightly narrower, sheet in front of me. So, to get the corners at the other end to overlay as well, I flick the blanket, and a big wave travels through the comforter. Hopefully, by the time it reaches the end, the two halves of the sheet will line up more closely. Often, they don’t—so I just flick it again.
Sometimes, it takes me three, four tries to get the edges to align, but sooner or later, I always get a layout I can work with. Then, it’s only a matter of lining up the side I’m holding with the other one, folding it over two more times, and voilà! A neatly folded, square cuddle blanket sits on the sofa, ready to open up again at night.
Life forces us through many a coin toss, but most of the time, there’s zero cost to giving the slot machine another spin. Randomness is everywhere, and while it’ll often obstruct your way forward, as soon as you give it another go, it might just as well clear a smooth path for you.
If anything could happen, there’s always reason to expect something good the next time. The only difference between a stony journey and a red carpet might be another coin toss—so whenever your blanket won’t fall into place, make sure you flick it again.