It was a collaboration of love, for a boy not yet 6 years
old. A custom chess set.
The boy, four years old, fell in love with the game.
Mastered the pieces and moves within a few weeks of playing with the “learner
edition”, a set his mother needed for at least many months longer. A boy who devoured the Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess book; memorizing the pictures depicting
the moves of the game before he could read the words that explained them. Who by 5, often allowed his opponents to win
so they would continue to play with him, considering the concession all a part
of learning the game…
He, his Papa, built the wooden case, lined it with dark
green felt. Measured and installed the
slats to create 32 individual pockets for each piece to rest in. Routered the lid, precisely measured to rest
just inside the lip of the case. The
wood shone a regal luster with a dark stain and varnish and was completed with
two brass handles and four black pedestal feet for support. Sixty-four perfect squares created the chess
board on the top, displaying its purpose with elegant design.
She, Nana, made the pieces.
Thirty-two in all. Two teams of 16
pieces; one ivory with a gold band at the bottom and identifying gold accents
represented the white team. The other,
done in navy blue with a gold band at the base and gold identifying accents
represented the black team. Each ceramic
green ware piece cleaned, meticulously painted, glazed and fired. A circular green felt piece that matched the
inside felt of the case was placed on the bottom of each one, and provided a
sliding elegance across the chess board.
As a boy not yet six, he cherished the gift. He knew it came with all the love they felt
for him. He loved the largeness of it –
the beauty of it and the time it took them to make it. Yes, he was unique and even at his young age
appreciated those things. What he didn’t
know, yet, was the legacy it held. How
it spoke to the validation and respect of their relationship. You see, they didn’t make a child’s game
set. They made a piece to last a
lifetime. A piece that would last past their
lifetimes.
In the twenty years they shared his life, they played all
the pieces in his game. As a very young
boy, he often saw them as king and queen of their domain - matriarch and
patriarch of the family; providers for all. At times they stood firm as protecting
knights, keeping a watchful eye throughout his childhood and teenage
years. Often they slipped into the role
of bishop, providing spiritual guidance or standing sentry as rooks, a place of
refuge in a storm. And always, always,
as the most underrated of pieces, as pawns, stalwart and loyal, supportive in
any way they could be and at the ready to sacrifice themselves for him.
The chess set, after games too numerous to count, sits
still today, in the place of honor it's had for the past seventeen years in
the living room. The boy, now a grown
man, is working to establish his own domain in the world. The chess set, and the legacy, wait to follow
him to his kingdom.
