I looked at my opponent over the maple and mahogany battlefield covered with kings, queens and knights after half an hour of silent contemplation. Fallen soldiers—abandoned in the heat of battle—were scattered along the sides of the table. My gaze shifted to the most experienced strategist in my home country – a man who had dedicated his life to a war whose climactic battle was unfolding before me. I glanced at the board once more, searching for a way out, but my valiant warriors were too trapped to retreat. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay I first fell in love with the game of chess when I was ten; my Egyptian grandfather offered to teach me the game when incessant rain trapped us indoors for most of his two-week visit. I accepted his offer purely out of politeness - I had seen many others poring over their chess sets for hours, and I had no desire to waste my time on something I considered as if boring. My interest, however, skyrocketed from the moment we started our first match. As an inexperienced player, I had no idea how to coordinate my pieces and could only watch in horror as my grandfather overwhelmed my defenses and crushed me in twenty moves. Naturally competitive, I asked for a rematch, and then another. Grandpa always agreed graciously, and in the days that followed we must have played over 100 games of chess. With each match I gained a little understanding, but despite my best efforts, I didn't win a single one. Before returning to Egypt, my grandfather made me dream with his farewell words. “Give your all and you will triumph.” For the past seven years, that's exactly what I've tried to do. After bidding farewell to my grandfather, I stopped at an airport gift shop and purchased a beginner's chess manual outlining the basic strategies of the game. That evening - and many evenings thereafter - I spent hours reading this book. Later, I amassed over thirty chess books specific to many different aspects of the game - opening advances, midgame tactics, endgame strategies - and devoured them all with enthusiasm. As my love for the game grew, I joined many online chess servers, and as they did not satisfy my enormous appetite for the game, I started a chess club in a local community college and have competed in numerous statewide chess tournaments. I improved quickly. For me, chess is more than a game; it’s a philosophy. If failures have taught me anything, it's that perseverance pays off in the end. Winning the boardroom depends on my ability to analyze complicated positions for hours; success in the real world depends on my ability to plan ahead and think long term. Only by carefully considering the consequences of every move I made, on and off the board, did I achieve my position in front of the strongest player in the state. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized paper from our expert now. writers.Get Custom EssayI looked at my opponent. Reaching out with a smile, I broke the silence. "I can't find a breakthrough. Drawing?" “Draw,” he agreed. "Good game. "That's another thing I learned from chess. In life, we cannot."