The Chess Game – The Difference between Kings & Pawns

There are hundreds of predictable comparisons between chess and life.

I promise not to talk about those.

Stay with me…

There really is a good reason why I’m posting a photograph of my son’s chess set.

Today, I’ll give you some food for thought pertaining to your life –

and the people you allow into your social circle.

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Thank you for reading yesterday.

I believe my post  was a tad long.

It is an honor that you make my blog part of your reading week…so I want to honor your time by sending a brief message today.

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I need to make a personal confession.

As I grow older and ‘wiser?’, I have almost a zero tolerance for people who are arrogant.  My disdain for those types worsen through the years.  (And that’s not a good thing, really.)

I never fully grasped the notion how people with money or status should feel more important than another person with less.  There I said it.

You might be wondering what rock I just crawled out from under. Or when I landed on Planet Earth.

Perhaps – my disbelief, in the concept that wealth catapults one individual’s value over another with fewer worldly goods, could stem from growing up on a farm in rural America.

Or my counter-cultural ideals could easily be derived from my humble beginnings as an orphaned infant.  Who knows?

I believe what I believe – no matter what the reason.

Recently, I discovered an Italian Proverb which summed up and supported my core belief.

Once the game is over, the king and the pawn go back in the same box.

~ Italian Proverb

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As I see it, there are 3 basic messages embedded in this proverb.

(1) In its literal term, it obviously means when the actual chess match is over, the player throws all of the pieces in the same box.

(2) Metaphorically – this proverb alludes to the end of life.

(3) But it’s the 3rd allegorical message that means the most to me:   We are all created equally.

On a chess board, the king supersedes the Pawn.  But in another environment (like the storage box), the King is just another carved wooden piece stored in a felt-lined container.

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Same with people.

This proverb begged me to ask myself a very important question, “Is my chosen social circle – of friends, neighbors and business associates – resembling the Royal Snobs?

When I asked myself this question, I came to a simple, but surprising conclusion.

My answer is what I’ll leave you with… as your food for thought today.

After really thinking about the King/Pawn analogy, I realized that some of my friends and associates who are generationally wealthy people are some of the kindest, sincerely humble, and most generous in my social circle. Without question.

While on the other hand, some recently successful people (nouveau riche) in my life – had tendencies to fill every room they entered with an air of superiority.  Of course, not everyone.  But definitely some did.

Over the past tumultuous five or so years, I have done a lot of soul-searching and editing in my personal life.  I have made a concerted effort to surround myself with kind people giving good and positive energy.

So here’s my personal wish for you this Thursday morning… 

I hope your days are filled with Queens of Generosity and Kings of Kindness….and quality people who enrich your life everyday.

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Take care.  We’ll end our week with our Friday Inspirational message.