If you ever win anything, don’t gloat. It is not nice and if you do, it will eventually come back to bite you in the “derrière”.
There is no better way to antagonize and make enemies than by taking a malicious pleasure in somebody’s miseries.
Look at the elections.
Obama won, but he didn’t gloat. He is too smart for that and he knows that soon or later he will have to deal with those he defeated.
He even acknowledged his opponent in his victory speech.
Mitt Romney whose political fortune took a turn for the worse on Tuesday night also played nice. But he couldn’t gloat.
Reluctant at first to admit defeat, he finally came out, and with a frozen smile on his face, he congratulated Barack Obama on his victory and wished him the best.
He might not have exuded sincerity but there was no other way, for nobody likes a sore loser.
Gone are the days when the victors crucified their enemies. Nowadays it is much smarter to treat them with humility and respect than humiliate them publicly.
It is also wise to remember that the bite of a humiliated foe is worse than the bite of a king cobra.
So, even on the pétanque field, don’t ever gloat. Even if you “fanny” the other team. At the end of the game, modesty is always in good taste.
Tell your opponents how lucky you have been and how well they played.
No need to upset a recoiled king cobra, don’t you think?
If you absolutely must boast, do it in the privacy of your own home or go to some Latin America country where machismo rules.
In California, avoid showing off in public. Nobody likes an egotistic braggart.
To conclude, it is far wiser to remain humble in victory and gracious in defeat rather than to gloat like a flea on a dog.
Alain