Hi, chess for me is an impossible game to conquer. When I win I get a passing sense of accomplishment that lasts but a fleeting moment. When I lose, I beat myself up for being so dumb. When I draw, I become as neutral as a car that continues to ride, but the engine is not engaged anymore.

There are times when I hate the game to the point that I want nothing to do with it; other times, I love the game because it is so challenging and stimulating, yet it always escapes the grasp of anyone who wants to discover the secret behind the game.

However, sooner or later, anyone who loves the game, will fall under its spell, like it nor not. It is inevitable.

Whether we are a grandmaster with his eyes to the world title, or an aspiring amateur that plays for fun, chess is an unique game that seduces our minds and incites us to try harder, to go further and to go higher in order to grab the opponent king by the horns and beat it down to dust.

And yet, at the end, it’s all a mind game that exists only inside of us, but somehow it manages to laugh aloud at our naiveté for being chess-lovers that still believe we can conquer her with a hypnotizing and logical mindset that is forever looking to find the best move that will tilt the game on our favor.

To sum it all up, I think chess still waits for an artist to paint a song on the board as he dazzles his opponents with brilliant moves until the very, very end. In my opinion chess is an art, not a sport, so to be the best, one must be an artist with genius qualifications that moves the pieces in such harmony that nothing keeps them from dancing across the board in unison until all has been said and done.

In that sense, neither Carlsen nor Caruana or anybody else for that matter have it… Only God could have given us such a challenging game, and only One with an infinity mind filled with wisdom and understanding could play always a perfect game.

It takes a creator to create such an awesome game. Is this perhaps an invitation to play with Him according to His rules and win the game of life as He always wanted us to?

Yes, chess is like a tease trying to teach us that to dance with our creator is much better that moving dead pieces across the board. On the other hand, to play chess is to play “god” a little bit because in a sense we are the ones who move the pieces across the board according to our fancy. Yes, we are the ones who are in complete control of our game. The difference is that the pieces are not alive, therefore they don’t have a free will.

The genius of God is to work in and with us to accomplish His eternal love-purposes even if we are working against Him. Now, that I call the game of life which of course is another topic that could be discussed at length on another occasion.

Going back to Carlsen and Caruana, to mention just two of the best grandmasters in the world, I sincerely believe that they are just pawn pushers that win games using the smallest advantage possible, but for the most part their games lack the luster of a masterpiece.

However, they will go down in history as effective, technical and orderly players that at times showed dazzles of brilliance, but never in the whole sense of the word.

In the world of chess, brilliant players that play brilliant games with the stroke of a genius are still waiting to appear from just about anywhere. It could come from one of the poorest countries of the world or even from the chess capital of the world: Moscow. It doesn’t matter. These future unknown players to come will come, but their artful games will be far apart and few in between simply because of their human frailty.

In my case, my goal is to be an artist on paper that writes to unveil the mysteries of creation while I abide with the Lord of creation in a dance of love. At the same time I would love to play a friendly game with you and see what transpires between us.

In my opinion, rating numbers are just that: numbers. So, whether I am a 1300 or 1700 player, try not to overestimate me because of what my past games reveal. At rare times, I have beaten “A” players easily, yet I have lost to 1350 players for having made silly and frustrating bad moves; however, I will try for as long as I can to reach the 2000 mark. That’s my ultimate goal, no more, no less.

Is it possible for me? I don’t know, but I’m sure of one thing and one thing only… It all depends on you! ;-)

Covenant-Seer