Chess is the game of kings and champions. It is an elegant game, devoid of chance, dependent only on mental prowess and strategy. It is a complicated game, involving thousands of possible solutions to capture the opponent’s King. It is a game that I love.

One of the advantages of now having my brother living so close to me is that we have again taken up this wonderful pastime. I’d almost forgotten just how much I love playing chess. In high school we were both among those ‘geeks’ on the chess team – we met once a week as a group to play and learn and hone our strategies. ((By the way, all those stereotypes you hear about the chess team at your local high school? They simply aren’t true.)) Several times a year we would travel around the state for various tournaments. ((I think my best rating was somewhere around a 914, which isn’t great but isn’t horrible, either.)) It was fun just to be able to see different schools, make new friends, and socialize along the way.

I haven’t really played much in recent years, though. Chess is a game that seems to have fallen out of favor. There aren’t many people who even know how to play, let alone understand and appreciate the nuances and intricacies of the game. It is the ultimate strategy game, one that I hope to now be able to improve on.

I have a feeling that chess is going to become a weekly ritual for my brother and me. Any other chess players out there?

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