Teamwork

Today, after Founder's Day, I sat down to play Taiti with other SJAB members. We were playing, until one player, who was not very familiar with the game, said, "Oh, I can put any five cards?"

The reply was, "Of course not! It has to be related in some way!"

Now, that had me thinking, since the sets of cards in the game are ranked according to their relations with each other, rather than the individual cards. Of course, the individual cards will come into play should there be a tie in the relations of the cards to each other. What do I mean by this? Instead of using Taiti, I shall use Poker, since it contains more sets, and is similar to Taiti.

The various suits of the cards represent the goals of each card, just as countries have their own flags. The numbers on the cards represent the abilities of the cards. In Poker, the highest card is an Ace. The set of highest value is the Royal Flush. In it, the cards are a 10, J, Q, K, A of the same suit. This is the optimal combination a team. The cards in the Royal Flush have the same suit, which means that they have similar goals, and they have the highest values of the suit, which means that they have great abilities as well. A team that has great abilities and teamwork. What could be better?

Ace/King:
In this set, there must be an ace and a king. Two members out of the five have great abilities, but the cards may not be of the same suit. This set is the lowest, since a team with ability is better than a team without.

One pair:
In this set, there has to be two cards that are similar. Notice that a pair of twos, the lowest cards, can overcome an ace and a king, the highest cards. This is because the two twos can suppport each other. If one falls, the other can pick him up. Just as the Bible says that if a single person can set flight a thousand birds, two can set flight ten thousand.

Two pair:
Wonderful! We actually have two pairs that are similar to each other! The only problem is that these two pairs are not working with each other, and are only loyal to their partners. This is of course better than a single pair though.

Three of a kind:
Three cards that are similar to each other. Now, we have three cards that are similar to each other. This shows that three people who have the same target would work better than two pairs of two who work for different goals. Thus, teamwork is more important than numbers; quality is better than quantity.

Straight:
These cards are all consecutive. They do have slight similarities with each other, but not total. Now, this shows that it would be better for five people to work for the approximate same goal than to have three high-abilitied people working together. After all, there is strength in numbers.

Flush:
Now we're talking! Five cards of the same suit. All five cards are working for the same goal! Notice that in this case, the values on the cards do not have to tally. They do not have to be very high either. This shows that it does not matter how far apart the abilities of the people are, as long as they work for the same goal.

Full House:
Three of the same number, with another two. This is similar to two pairs, except that the final card has decided to join with one of the two pairs to make three of a kind. What this shows is that one person who changes his mindset can make the team more powerful. From two pairs, we now get a full house.

Straight Flush:
The cards all have the same goal, since all of them have the same suit. They are not totally similar though, since their values are different. Actually, it would be good for them to be different, since a team where all the members are exactly the same would be like a team of robots, having no mind of its own.

Royal Flush:
It is a type of straight flush, except that the cards are the highest possible. As mentioned earlier, nothing beats teamwork and ability combined.

Now, what am I trying to say here? Of course, teamwork is important. A team of two people who are united in heart will perform far better than a single person of high ability. So, my fellow bloggers, if you are ever in a team, make sure that you have the same goals as your team, because only then can the team succeed.

Not to forget, a lot can be learned from a game of Taiti =P

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