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![image.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/b0s/EoGxpsoqiu8NbCScRx5t6BpbPSKvFsqnfzZtVFLYzyo44HjJ9JypZzvo4PRHCqXPec1.png)


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Chess, it is often called the royal game. I can't remember the first time I ever saw the chess board but I remember knowing it to be a game for the intellectuals and the smartest of people. It was a game I avoided for quite a while, it wasn't until my final year in secondary (high) school. We'd finished all the major exams, but we were made to write this optional exam that could be used as an alternative if our results weren't so great. No one really cared about the exam so rather than read we'd find other things to use to kill the time. I read lots of novels and even self help books, played card games, tried a lot of new things, and then one day I was bored and I came across people playing the beautiful game of chess. 


It wasn't easy for me to learn how to play, but the interest I had kept me going and before I knew it I started getting better and better. Coupled with enough free time and peer pressure I started getting good really fast. I remember there were times we'd used paper and some abandoned wood to play chess (because all the standard boards were in use). We'd draw the pieces on the paper.


After school, I stopped for a short period of time, but then I started again after some time and then since then I have been playing actively and passively.



I remember before I learnt to play chess I wondered how people found something so mundane so interesting. Then, In my eyes, it looked like some slow and nerdy game. But after playing I laugh at the fact I even thought that way. Chess is such an exciting game. The strategy, planning of attacks, the defence, survival in a difficult position, completely crushing your opponent, and then the sweet feeling when you finally get to utter that word "Checkmate". It is a special type of high especially if it was a tough game.

I am not sure if this is a personal thing or it's a general thing, but I like to believe that how I play chess has something to do with my mentality towards life. I like to go all in on the offence, building quickly as well as setting up to attack from the start, then once I believe I am ready I start to apply maximum pressure till I get what I want, a win. 


There is this common misconception that I see flying around and that a lot of people have. And that is that chess is some kind of special game for the highly intellectual. Now that I can play quite well I realize It is far from the truth. In fact, most of the players aren't some intellectual titans but instead, they are just people who have mastered the game. The exact same way people master other games is how they master chess, by playing consistently. It has nothing to do with IQ or brilliance. A lot of the times the top games comes down to who has memorized more sequences of moves.

Chess is a very fun game and is something that can be played by anyone. I have a feeling sometime in the future I'll find myself playing the beautiful game of chess with my children while we bond and talk about how beautiful their mum is or something. 


This prompt was inspired by [Inleo prompts for may](https://inleo.io/@leogrowth/may-inleo-monthly-prompts). You should definitely check them out for some ideas.


### <center>**~THANKS FOR READING~**</center>



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<sub>*[Cover Image by Carlos Esteves of Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/photos/shallow-focus-photo-of-chess-set-G8wvNzm_fK0)*</sub>



 

Posted Using [InLeo Alpha](https://inleo.io/@b0s/chess-reflections)

Posted Using [InLeo Alpha](https://inleo.io/@b0s/chess-reflections)