I like my fortune cookies to contain fortunes.

It seems like a necessary part of the deal. Being in the name.

That’s what I expect: a fortune. That’s also what I want. I take a moment, thinking of what I am in most need of, and crack open the cookie.

Sometimes I don’t get a fortune in my fortune cookie. Sometimes I get proverb cookies. I don’t like those. There are two reasons.

1. They aren’t fortunes.
2. I didn’t break open this cookie hoping to hear a quaint aphorism. I wanted my fortune told.

Sometimes, though, I get something that isn’t a fortune or a proverb. Something like this:

A compliment.

I like compliments.

A compliment like this one in the picture, saying “you are imaginative in using your skills.” Is at least about me. That puts it in the vicinity of a fortune.

It is personal, specific, and deals with my future. That’s close enough for me.

And the fact that I needed to hear it makes it perfectly fortunate.

What do you expect of a fortune cookie? What does yours tell you?