This morning, my husband told me that he and some buddies at work were going to pitch in (a buck each) and play the lottery this week. “How much?” I asked. “$250 million,” he said. Not bad. Oh, what we could do with that much money, right? Admit it, you’ve thought the same thing at some point in your life. We all have. Who wouldn’t love to win the lottery?

What’s interesting to note, however, is what some people may sacrifice to increase their odds of winning.

I once stood in line behind a man who tossed fifty dollars on the counter and handed over several sheets of official lottery paper with all the bubbles filled in. I could tell by the slightly tattered edges and bent corners that they’d been used many times. And I wondered how often he sacrificed his fifty to the lottery gods . . . once a month? Once a week? Twice a week? And had he ever won anything? The cashier ran the papers through the machine, rang him up, gave him his pile of bubble sheets and tickets, then said goodbye – and called him by name. Oh my. I then stepped up to the counter, handed over my one dollar bill and asked for the computer to choose my numbers. (What?! Can’t I play, too?) The jackpot was one of the highest on record . . . I had to try. Ah, the lure of easy money. So tempting . . .

But it got me wondering . . . just what are the odds of winning? What is the likelihood that someone would win the big jackpot? Just how possible is it to beat disgustingly overwhelming odds and get rich quick? A better question might be ‘what other things are more likely to happen than winning the lottery’? Well, let’s see. You have a greater chance of being struck by lightning . . . dying from a bee sting or even some disease that will eat at you from the inside out . . . ending up on death row . . . and dying in a car crash on your way to buy the ticket . . . than you do of winning the jackpot. Some people believe that there are ways to increase your chances of winning by choosing the same numbers every time, studying the recurrence of numbers, avoiding certain numbers, or picking ones that aren’t popular. If you ask me, the only thing that increases is the amount of the jackpot.

All kidding aside, what’s really scary is how much some people actually fork over for their chance to win big. Gas money. Food money. Rent money. All in the hopes of striking it rich. I’m all for a little fun, but not if it means putting the needs of my family at risk. Sure, it’s fun to dream, but dreams alone don’t pay the bills or feed your children and not winning will get old pretty quickly. So, if you’re thinking of throwing your hat into the lottery ring, be realistic about your chances and just make sure you’re in it for fun.