30 B4 30 Day 14: Learn to Play Chess

"Melissa, you can't be the best at everything," said Ms. Brennan, my cheerleading coach in 10th grade. She made this "profound" statement when she saw me crying out of frustration because my straddle jump sucked. I knew at 15 that I couldn't be good at everything, no matter how hard I tried, and I still know now, but thanks for the sensitivity Ms. Brennan. Over time, I have learned to accept that I really can't play soccer because I don't have fast feet and that I don't have the cooking gene that runs in my Italian and Puerto Rican family. These qualities, among others, I have accepted as personal flaws. And tonight, I learned another very valuable lesson...I am not good at chess either.

Tonight's item: Learn to Play Chess, was interesting but very difficult. TK is excellent at chess (and soccer too...figures!) so I had him teach me how to play. He started out with the placement of the pieces, then their names and what they can do. I had to jot down a quick cheat sheet to refer back to, complete with sketches of a horse (knight), a castle (rook) and a place card holder (bishop). When I was a kid, I used the chess pieces to play checkers because the boards are similar and no one had the patience to actually teach me to play. I'm slightly surprised TK was up for the job because when I ask him to teach me how to snowboard or surf, I get shot down.

So, we played a few games and I lost them all, but I learned how difficult chess really is. You have to play offense and defense at the same time, which I am not used to being that I played sports my whole life, and you have to think two to three moves ahead to keep yourself out of trouble. It is interesting and intricate. One game it took me only 45 seconds to get myself into checkmate. I am far from becoming a Bobby Fisher protege, but that doesn't mean I won't play again and keep trying to win. It may take me a couple of years, but I will prevail.

You never know what you are capable of if you don't try, and by try I mean get beat and learn why you lose before you start to really succeed. So what if I suck at chess now? It's only the beginning.