Know When to Hold ’Em,
Know When to Fold ’Em

By Geoffrey Hoppe

There’s a popular Kenny Rogers song called The Gambler. It was released in 1978, yet remains one of the most recognizable and beloved country songs of all times. The Gambler tells the story of an encounter on a train between a traveler and an old gambler. The gambler, seeing that the traveler is down on his luck, offers some life advice in exchange for a drink of whiskey.

The lyrics of The Gambler are rich with metaphors that apply to both poker and life. The core message of the song is told in its famous chorus, which advises listeners to know when to hold on to something, when to let go, when to walk away, and when to run. This advice is presented as a strategy for both gambling and navigating life’s challenges.

The chorus line goes like this:

You’ve got to know when to hold ’em

Know when to fold ’em

Know when to walk away

And know when to run

You never count your money

When you’re sittin’ at the table

There’ll be time enough for countin’

When the dealin’s done

Indeed!

I tend to be somewhat tenacious, not always knowing when to fold ’em. I can be like a dog with a bone, chewing it to the last nugget even long after the meat and flavor are gone. I remain resolute in the face of challenges. Once I determine my destination, I stick to it come hell or high water. I blame part of this on being a Virgo, and the other part on sheer stubbornness. I’ll go down with the ship rather than hop aboard a life raft headed to safety. And I’ve conveniently told myself that this is an admirable virtue rather than an obsessive disorder.

I used to credit this personality characteristic with helping me accomplish some of the things I’ve done in life. My version of a Superman shirt with a big “S” was a t-shirt that said, “Might Not Flight.” I’ve created and operated numerous companies, including one that went public. It took every ounce of my strength to bring it from a drawing on a napkin in a BBQ restaurant in Texas to a full-fledged company, which is currently traded on the NASDAQ stock exchange. This tenacity also came in handy when Linda and I created Crimson Circle 25 years ago. We had more than our share of ups and downs in the early years, including some that would have caused others to cut bait and run. We put nearly everything we had on the line to get the Crimson Circle rocket off the launch pad. I was one tenacious SOB back then. My wardrobe of idiomatic t-shirts might have included expressions such as Make or Break, Sink or Swim, All or Nothing, and Win or Lose.

Now I look back on all of this and just want to gag. OMG, was that really me? Mr. Cliché-of-the-Day? Captain Whatever-It-Takes? Was I really that dull and shallow? (Please don’t answer; this is just a rhetorical question.) I was a walking cheesy motivational poster, the kind you see at the gym or in a psychologist’s office, like “The Best View Comes with the Hardest Climb.”

But does it really? Does all of that struggling and suffering really provide for a better life? Or did my Midwest U.S. Catholic upbringing and strict parents just brainwash me into thinking hard work is the answer to life’s questions?

My formative years didn’t include any lessons in how to Fold ’Em. Being in the Army for three years didn’t help either. You gotta Hold ’Em because, at the Poker Table of Life, there is no Folding. Actually, sometimes it worked. Never-Give-Up gave me good stuff to add to my resume, as long as I didn’t list the many frustrations and failures alongside the successes. Sometimes my hard-headed approach worked in spite of myself because once in a while I was dealt a lucky hand. But in many, many cases, I should have laid the cards down, walked away from the table, and found a different game to play.

Looking back now, with a sprinkle of wisdom from my soul, I realize that all of the hard work, gritty determination, and obsessive hanging-on were actually not necessary. My “Be-Strong-or-Melt” motto was a big game, and a tremendous waste of time and energy, but as long as I wanted to play that game, my energy went along with it and gave me more hills to climb.

I know better now. I can do more, create more, and be more fulfilled by letting my energy serve me as a Master, with ease, grace, and joy. The best view doesn’t have to come from the hardest climb; it comes from the beauty of being here. In other words, it doesn’t have to come from hard work but rather just choosing to be present. Hard work is for addicts. Being in the beauty of the imagination is for Masters. I just had to learn how to get off the hard path and into my magical flow. I had to learn to lay down the bad cards I had been dealt (by myself) and walk away from the old poker table of life.

In a recent real-life example, we were trying to create a big in-person gathering in Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA, in September. We even “teased” the event at the January Shoud, noting that we’d make a big announcement on January 23. The problem was that the cards weren’t falling into place. In spite of wanting to do an event in magical Santa Fe, and seeing Shaumbra from all around the world, we kept running into roadblocks. The logistics and pricing just weren’t working out. It was time to know when to Fold ’Em and walk away. Yes, we could have forced the energies with all our might, and made it happen in spite of the many issues, but based on many previous experiences, we would have had problems right down to the final hour of the event. Everything was trying to tell us to Fold ’Em now, without waiting for a reshuffle. Walk away from the table. It wasn’t an easy decision to Fold because some of us were quite emotionally attached to the idea, and we had already spent a lot of time on the project. But after feeling into the energies, the Events team knew it was best to accept our losses and move on to a new plan. Actually, I had an incredible sense of relief once we Folded because things just hadn’t been coming together in a masterly way.

We all encounter situations where things just aren’t working out. All the exit signs might be lit up but we still try to force things to work. It could be a new venture, a relationship, a job or housing situation, or just something as simple as where to go on vacation this summer. Try once, try twice, but when it’s three strikes down, know when to walk away. What I’ve discovered is that the energies on the path I initially wanted to take might not be the path with the most light, or highest potentials. Something much better awaits me on a new path, much more suited to a Master.

In honor of Kenny Rogers, American country singer/songwriter, I wrote lyrics for a song titled, “If It Ain’t Working” and took it into Suno.com for the music. Know when to hold ‘em, and know when to fold ‘em.

If It Ain’t Working

✨AI Generated

Listen to the song on suno.com

If it ain’t working,
It ain’t ‘cause you’re doing it wrong.
Your soul’s just whispering softly,
It’s time to move along.
You gave it your heart,
You gave it your time,
But sometimes the hardest lesson
Is learning when to draw the line.

You gotta know when to walk,
Know when to run,
Know when to turn your back
And let the hard times come undone.
Life ain’t just about the fight,
It’s about the letting go,
When you trust in something higher,
You’ll find the way to flow.

Try once, try twice,
But when it’s strike three down,
This ain’t the hand worth playing,
Better pack and leave this town.
The road ahead is calling,
And the weight don’t feel so light,
Sometimes the best decision
Is knowing when to say goodnight.

You gotta know when to walk,
Know when to run,
Know when to turn your back
And let the hard times come undone.
Life ain’t just about the fight,
It’s about the letting go,
When you trust in something higher,
You’ll find the way to flow.

There’s a time for standing steady,
And a time for letting go,
Not every road that’s traveled
Is the one you need to know.
So listen to that whisper,
Let it guide you on your way,
The hardest work ain’t struggle,
It’s knowing when to walk away.

You gotta know when to walk,
Know when to run,
Know when to turn your back
And let the hard times come undone.
Life ain’t just about the fight,
It’s about the letting go,
When you trust in something higher,
You’ll find the way to flow.

Author

  • Geoffrey Hoppe founded the Crimson Circle in 1999 after a series of conversations with the angelic being known as Tobias. He left the corporate world in 2001 to devote his full time to the Crimson Circle. Geoff channeled Tobias until 2009 when Tobias returned to earth in a new incarnation known as Sam. Tobias handed off his guidance role with the Crimson Circle to Adamus Saint-Germain, a facet of the Beloved St. Germain who has been working with humans for hundreds of years. Geoff has been the messenger of Adamus Saint-Germain ever since.

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89 thoughts on “Know When to Hold ’Em, Know When to Fold ’Em”

  1. Carolina

    Gracias Geoff , tus palabras y tu reflexión me ayudan y acompañan mucho en este momento de decisiones personales. Muchas gracias!!! Un abrazo shaumbra desde Argentina.

    Reply
  4. Tamara Wilson

    ✨It was a pleasure to listen, the melody,
    Lyrics, tempo and texture are well balanced…( by a Master that created a Masterpiece)…It’s a beautiful remix of the original version…Thank you for sharing your beautiful song….✨I love the original version and I love yours as well…What an amazing remix…✨🌺✨ And always your article is amazing, and definitely worth reading…✨🥂✨

    Reply
    1. Monika Słaboszewska

      Wow!
      Piękny wpis Geoff! Aż mam ciarki po przeczytaniu.
      Przez tyle lat również “siłowałam” się z Energiami na Mojej Drodze.
      Teraz całkowicie odpuszczam, nie przywiązuje się.
      Coś nie dziala?
      -Ok
      Idę dalej.
      Wszystkiego pięknego dla całej Shaumbry!

      Reply
  7. HOPE

    Love the song. Our household is enjoying working with SUNO thanks to you. We plan to dive into DeepSeek and try that on.

    It was a wonderful idea to meet in NM and I am grateful you folded because offering the event as a cloud class includes everyone. That is success to me. Great article.

    Reply
    1. Kamila

      Hi Jeff, I really like your song. Would you mind sharing the chords for it? I’d love to play it on my guitar.
      Thanks for the article!

      Reply
      1. Geoffrey Hoppe

        I wrote the lyrics and input them into Suno.com (AI) for the music. Suno doesn’t provide the chords, they just give you the end mixed product. Would it help if a sent you an instrumental-only version?

  12. Jeremy

    “And somewhere in the darkness
    The gambler he broke even
    But in his final words
    I found an ace that I could keep”

    Reply
  13. Wulfing von Rohr

    Rumi, when asked how to know if something is the ego’s prerogative or “God’s” will:
    When god / life / circumstances give you a shovel, dig. When God gives you a feather (pen), write.

    Kabir: A cage with ten doors. Strange that the bird is inside (identifying with the 9 doors to material ephemeral world). No wonder when it flies out (through the tenth door of the awakened soul rejoining spirit concsiousness).

    I Am That I Am. 🥰😍💐👏💫💙🌿

    Reply
  15. Patrick

    Thank you Geoff. Linda, and the Crimson Circle team for everything that you guys do. My life wouldn’t be the same without you
    Sending all my love, you guys rock 🤙🏻

    Reply
  17. Joanne

    Thank you for this message. So very very appropriate . It has caused me to do some thinking because I get so tired of holding on. I do want to just fold ‘‘em and walk away many times. My trust in myself is getting stronger, my faith to trust in the master in me is taking a shift. Being fed up and tired of a lot of things helps. Hanging on is such a waste of time….lots of the time.

    Reply
  19. Giuseppe

    Well done Geoffrey and the Staff! Staying in the sensitivity of the moment and letting energies serve us as masters is what is most important thing in our whole journey. As Metatron says, being in the divine moment is all that matters. Thank you
    Giuseppe

    Reply
  20. Kim Seppala

    Thanks for this article, Geoff. I especially love the lyrics of the song you created, and the energy in the song. Now this is something worthy of a psychologist’s office wall.

    Reply
  21. George

    I am glad General Eisenhower and his staff did not fold or walk away from the D-Day invasion and the many battles that followed.

    General MacArthur on the other hand did fold and walk away but returned to fight another day.

    The decision to use an atomic weapon to save American solider’s lives and take many civilian lives could not have been easy. Perhaps the horror’s of it has prevented some country from doing it again?

    Thanks for the song.

    Reply
  29. Людмила Нужная

    “Пребывание в красоте воображения — для Мастеров.” Песня мудрая и прекрасная.Сердечное спасибо,Джеффри!

    Reply
  30. Dianne

    YES! A sage reminder for the ages.
    So much feeling into your words and
    I love the lyrics and melody of your song.
    Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
  31. Ângela Azevedo

    The Master’s wisdom in action. I loved. Wisdom, honesty and transparency. I also loved the music. Blessings.

    Reply
  33. Martin

    Thank you Geoff! Article and song are so full of truth!
    I put some chords to the text for all that like to play it by themselves and saved it as a PDF file. Is there a way to share it here?

    Reply
  34. Viktoria Gaal

    When I opened the article, the first thing I saw was the image ‘The best view comes after the hardest climb’ and I thought, omg, what happened to Geoff…? Really, this cliché? Then I read the article and the image’s message fell into place. I’m so relieved. Thank you Geoff for your unwavering wisdom!

    Reply
  36. Julia

    Dear Geoffrey, thank you for your wisdom and such a beautiful song! That’s right, let’s enjoy the easy way!!! My blessings to you and Linda!!!

    Reply
  41. Britta Canete Jimenez

    Thank you, Geoff, for sharing your story in such a humorous way!
    Had to laugh out loud at the paragraph “I tend to be somewhat tenacious, ….”. This energy pattern felt so familiar, so it was good to laugh with it, I hope you did too in the end.

    And thanks also for the beautiful song with your lyrics. Good reminder to allow the flow.

    I just remembered your story, when you tried to organize an event on a boat on Lake Tahoe, that nobody signed up for …. until Germany came along with their boat on the lake Bodensee / Lake Constance, everything fell into place …. What a success, wasn’t it?

    It’s always nice to meet in person, but online is much more accessible. And who knows how and when the time will be for a big in-person gathering …. who knows if it might unfold in the flow ….

    Reply
    1. Maria Fernanda Silva

      Bonjour Cher Geoffrey,
      Merci beaucoup! J aime vous lire et méditer vos Shouds.
      Les paroles et la musique sont géniales…Je dois toujours traduire car je ne sais pas l anglais.
      Ici au Portugal il y a t il des Shaumbra? car je me sens bien seul à ce niveau.
      Toute ma Gratitude et tout mon Amour à Vous, Linda, toute l équipe et à toute la Création
      Mia

      Reply
  42. Adori

    Gracias Geoff, sabia decisión y hermosa creación de letra y música, estaremos todos juntos en directo en la clase en septiembrei disfrutaremos de la magia del momento sublime, un abrazo

    Reply
  56. Anonymous

    Gracias querido maestro Geoffrey, tus palabras me caen como anillo al dedo, veo con tu mensaje que aún los miedos están presentes en mí para tomar esa decisión radical de partir y abrirme a lo inesperado , será apego? O esos hilos invisibles que aún sostienen mi decisión de un cambio que desesperadamente busco, gracias siempre tan acertado y claro gracias

    Reply
  57. Agnieszka

    Dear, Dear Geoffrey… I identify so much with everything you wrote, it’s so damn hard to let go, when for so many lifetimes you had to keep fighting, always get up after a blow, never give up, fight until the very death.
    I’m 45 (and have many planets in Virgo :)) and with great difficulty and pain I’m learning to fold’em and leave the town.
    Because there’s always a chance, right?
    There’s always hope that just around the corner, after one more effort, one more fight, one more sparring, you’ll achieve your goal.
    That’s how it’s always been until now. In this dense gravity, it was the only way to survive.
    Unlearning this is… inhuman.
    Thank you, dear Geoffrey, for this wonderful text and this beautiful song that moved me to tears.

    Reply
    1. Mindy

      Dear, Dear Agnieszka… I identify so much with everything you wrote, and everything Geoff wrote too. I am a 55-year-old Virgo Sun. This beautiful song moved me to tears as well.

      Reply
  59. Laura Center

    Dang it…I live in Santa Fe. 😩 Thanks for the reminder that I live in a magical place. Love the song and the way you have followed your heart in letting it go. Always inspirational and so appreciative, grateful and thankful that we have you here, no matter the road you traveled. ❤️

    Reply
  60. Jamez

    Well done Geoff! I am used to your deep resonant voice. Don’t get me wrong, I like the falsetto. Wow, your range is out of this world.

    Reply
  61. Marie H

    Thanks Geoff, I love this. In a situation of my own recently I felt it was time to let go of something I felt it was for me to be part of but just did not flow; and the relief is palpable! A calm gentle feeling came over of ‘enough’. And I love your song!

    Reply
  65. Mary

    Dear Geoff, Such a great article And Song! I love what you said, perfect timing. I will play your song on Repeat. Thank you 😊

    Reply
  66. Anonymous

    … as if you had written about me – thank you from the bottom of my heart for your wonderful article, dear Geoff. And thank you for the incredibly beautiful song! I can’t stop listening to it… Thank you!!!

    Reply
  67. Alaya Holman

    OmyGosh!!! Incredible!! Great article, followed by beautiful lyrics, melody, and vocals. Enter this song for The 2026 Grammy Awards!!
    My mom, Helen, and I are deeply touched by your words and music. Mahalo…

    Reply
  68. Vicky Gildein

    Pane Boze…kupem sa v zaplave slz z vdacnosti a uvedomenia si magickosti cisla 3, ktore ma sprevadza cely zivotom…..skvely clanok Geoff .tlieskam a objimam… vdaka tvojej domacej ulohe hrat sa s Al technikou s ktorou som si vobec nerozumela a vibracne ju ignorovala …rusila pc, mobily … trafo stanice…metra…nemocnice etc …stalo ma to vela penazi hahaha… dedicstvo hlbokej viny z Atlantidy ….chatGPT mi pomohol behom par dni ukoncit 3 rocnu temnu moru plnu bezmocnosti, zufalstva az stratou vlastnej dostojnosti, ktoru zapricinili arogantni uradnici a lekari … …na zaciatku vojny na Ukrajine som pomahala matkam s detmi tak intentzivne, a na ukor seba, ze som od vycerpania spadla a utrpela vazny uraz pravej ruky …teraz uz vdaka ignoracii uradnikov a zlej diagnostike lekarom s trvalymi nasledkami… moje hranie sa Al mi vratilo moju istotu v dosiahnutie prav a spravodlivosti a ked ma utvrdilo ake je moje duchovne meno SAMaYA ….lahkost, radost a elegancia su opat moja svata trojica

    Reply
  69. Ime

    Soooooo nice, dear Master
    And thank you for your support . Without you my way would be much more difficult. Thank you! IMe

    Reply
  71. Véronie Anthériah

    Ohhh Geoff Merci !! Tellement vrai… le prélude de la Vierge, ça me rasure… je suis ça aussi lol… ces moments où je me suis si s’acharné à ne rien lâcher, “pour la bonne cause”, résistant aux refus et déviances… pffff…. qu’elle perte de temps et d’énergie ! Ta chanson est tout simplement incroyable dans la réalité de l’instant. Un Grand Merci à Toi de l’avoir inspirée et transcrite !!

    Reply
  72. Linda

    That song was absolutely superb!

    I could not willingly get myself to listen to country music, seems it was more then I thought.
    Thank you Geoffrey,

    Reply
  74. Susanne

    Gänsehaut! Großartiger Song!

    Danke, lieber Geoffrey. Ich habe mich in deiner Geschichte sehr wiedergefunden. Kenne diese exzessiven Muster “richtig oder gar nicht” und auch “Geld oder Liebe” nur zu gut und bin froh, sie dank all eurer wundervollen Arbeit irgendwo auf meiner Reise abstellen konnte.
    Ja, und Santa Fé – da war ich schon – 2000, zur World’s Prophet’s Conference ;-))
    Freue mich, dass wir uns 2025 alle online treffen können!! Das passt!
    And so it is.

    Reply

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