Pawn Power

Inside every pawn is a Queen just waiting to be let out. It's a truth that I would constantly forget as my pawns would be left under protected (or not at all) and recklessly sacrificed or traded away. 

It's been just under two years since I've started to play chess again, after decades of not even looking at a chess piece and one of the things I've had to relearn is not to judge a pawn by the single point it is valued at but for how strong it can become with a promotion. 

I have started to shift my game strategy away from heavy major and minor piece attacks and forceful play towards a much slower more deliberate approach that sets up my pawns for the chance to fully realize their true potential.  Though it's tough to break out of game play that feels comfortable to me I have seen great success in the games that I managed to stick to the "release a pawns inner Queen" game plan.

It's taken a lot of tough losses for me to see the value in not just using pawns as fodder to make life easier for my other pieces and instead give the pawns respect right from the first move, but it's very much on my mind now. Right from the start of a game I look down at the board and in my mind's eye I picture all eight of my pawns wearing tiny crowns on top their perfectly round heads.