Do you remember the joy you used to find in a simple, brightly coloured bouncing ball? How you used to shriek with delight as you and your friends relished in its playful unpredictability. Was it going to hit a stone on the ground and veer sharply left instead of into the intended cupped hands of your friend? Was it going to bounce so high that only your bedroom ceiling could withstand its upward soar with an audible ‘thud’? Or perhaps on your next throw, it would land on your plush, soft duvet and be unexpectedly stopped in its tracks– devoid of any bounce. There may even have been an occasion when it ricocheted off a wall, hitting you in the temple, resulting in tears and a hug from someone who cared about you.

Suppose we recognise that many of our childhood games were, in fact, the beginning of our life lessons. In that case, we will see that this little bouncy ball was part of the intriguing learning tapestry of life. Inadvertently, in these innocent years of...