Scrambled

My youngest son got a Rubik’s Cube a few weeks ago. He was so happy and carried it everywhere. After a couple of days, I noticed that he never really mixed up the cube. He’d move a few things here or there, but only enough that he could easily solve it again. On the third day, I asked him if I could scramble it. He handed me the cube.

I turned and twisted every face of the toy in every direction. Tucker’s face was horrified. He knew I had mixed the cube up beyond his current ability to solve it. He started crying.

“You ruined it! Now I’ll never be able to fix it!”

I took the time to explain that he could figure it out, that this is what needed to happen so he could actually learn to solve the puzzle. He wasn’t having it. Tucker was inconsolable. I had ruined the Rubik’s Cube.

The next day, he began looking up videos about solving the cube. He practiced varied algorithms many times. Sometimes they worked, and many times they didn’t. I figured out a few things and taught him. His older brother spent even more time researching and learning how to solve any mixed-up cube. Tucker kept practicing, asking questions, and getting help when needed. He eventually figured it out. Hooray!

Initially, it was amusing to watch Tucker the first two days. He carried his Rubik’s Cube around like he had solved one of life’s great mysteries, but in reality, he hadn’t solved a thing. His minor turns to the left or right were nothing but a facade of skill. But then I could see how I often did the same thing. And it wasn’t quite so amusing.

Do you ever find yourself setting goals you already know you can easily achieve? Maybe you just stick to hobbies and activities that are within your wheelhouse. Do you try something new that is so scrambled and mixed up that you have NO IDEA what to do? Are you willing to just try something—anything? Do you seek opportunities for growth that are going to be arduous and riddled with failures?

Honestly, I don’t.

At least, I don’t usually seek those things out. Circumstances can force my hand a little bit, but I enjoy comfort…guarantees…a sure thing. I don’t love being uncomfortable. Maybe you feel the same.

However, I know that we evolve and improve as people when we try new things and set huge, ridiculous goals that seem impossible to reach.

No one’s learning anything by carrying a solved Rubik’s Cube around. Sure, other people may see the cube and think you solved it—and you may even believe that’s enough for you. But it’s not. You know you’re lying…at the very least, to yourself. Hard as it may be, you have to scramble the cube up and figure it out.

Tucker’s toy was a reminder that I can figure out anything.

And so can you.