“To climb the ladder of success, work hard and you’ll reach it.”
I used to collect and save fortune cookie fortunes. I would slop them in my purse and then tape them to my journal. I would put them at the end of my diary entries or just on their own page. It may seem odd or ridiculous because those fortunes are probably mass made in some smelly, grungy old warehouse. A warehouse, which in addition to being unsanitary probably breaks 10,000 labor laws and employs and underpays children.
The point isn’t that I believed the fortunes had some mystical power. I didn’t think that the universe was willing me to crack open a cookie that would lead me to the good fortune that led me to all the world’s riches and success. I didn’t think that by opening a cookie I would find the deep-rooted secret of life.
The point of the cookies was a reminder, to keep going to keep pushing. The fortunes often highlight the important things in life. One of the ones coveted in my journal reads “Always surround yourself with true friends.” Another read “be both a speaker of words and a doer of deeds”.
I don’t remember where I was or what I ate when I got those fortunes. I don’t remember how I felt or anything specific about those days, I’m sure I smiled at the warmth of the messages and felt a sprig of hope, but other than that I’m sure I slipped it into my purse and went along with my day.
It wasn’t about the idea that opening the right cookie would lead to fame. It was about the hope and the drive. The idea that if I want to climb the ladder of success I must work hard. They are reminders of what’s important in life, hard work and friends you can count on. It’s that hope, that belief that as long as I keep trying good things will come.
So the wisdom of the fortune cookie isn’t that by opening it you are rewarded with good luck. The wisdom is that the cookies serve as a reminder of what hard work and determination can bring will bring good things.
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