A Tale of Two Cities

 

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair."

Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

Josh's recent (and entirely fair) observation that I have not done a very good job of updating readers as to the exploits of the B and C team has prompted me to write a post, albeit on a different subject altogether. For those who think they would like a more in depth account of the season these LDCL teams have had - trust me, unless you like a good horror story, you probably wouldn't! 

Instead, I wanted to reflect on the emotional wringer chess puts us all through - and how even when we face a bad experience, we never know what might be just around the corner. 

I can honestly say that Monday's league match was one of my lowest points as a chess player (and there's stiff competition for that accolade.) I guess we've all been outplayed by someone when we least expected it, and that's never easy. I can't really bring myself to write much more than that. Suffice to say, a bad defeat can easily lead to a loss of confidence, and can make anyone wonder why they put themselves through the emotional wringer. 

Then on Wednesday, I went to a charity curry night where Steve Davis was the guest. We had an amazing chat about chess, and at the end of the evening he came back over to show me one of his games. It was really good fun! I remembered again how powerful chess is, and the role it can play in bringing people together. If Monday had to be the price for Wednesday, it was definitely worth it!

I'm not renowned as the most philosophical of losers. That said, I have been thinking a lot about perspective lately. Possibly because I've not had a great season. But also because sometimes it's good to step back and reflect. There's so much more to chess than a single loss (however painful) or a single victory (however good). Wednesday was the perfect reminder of that. Watch this space for the April edition of Chess Magazine, where with the help of a certain Mr Watson, I explore "coping with defeat" in more detail. (Let's face it, we've both got plenty of experience to draw on!)

So a week that started bleakly ended much more positively. And heck, if things don't improve I can always take up Snooker...