13. The world is a chessboard

The world is a chessboard /on which we play a game that was never supposed to be fair /but still excites us /with its numerous possibilities. /When I was 16 /My dad recommended that I should sign up for a chess club /and learnt how to play. /So I went /and my level was only good enough to play against a bunch of ten-year-olds. /What’s even more humiliating was that I actually had a hard time playing against them. /So reasonably /I became skeptical of the game/ and thought it was unfair. /You know on the chessboard /there is a king, /a queen, /rocks,/ bishops, /knights/ and pawns, /different pieces with different status and importance, /possessing different capabilities./ They stand in their strictly-drawn little squares /and line up accordingly to their value. /And let’s face it. /It’s the same in real life. /Some of us matter /while some of us don’t, /at least not that much. /Among the very first lines of The Declaration of Independence, /this one goes:/ we hold these truths to be self-evident /that all men are created equal./ What a beautiful line. /But how can we convince ourselves /that we are born equal /while our ancestors didnt die equal?/ I hate to say this, /but we do inherit most of the social capitals /that get to decide what kind of role we start with /when we come to this world. /However,/ the game still gets played for a reason./ The board of 64 little squares/ is magically enough to create a stage for wonderful things to happen. /In just first four moves,/ there are 318 million different ways to play /and in a game between two equal players /there will be around 50 moves in total./ And just think about it ,/ how many moves we take in lifetime？ /I’ll say /countless. /No one is able to predict what’s going to happen next, /which I think is the true beauty of our world. /And that just paints a silver lining, /like a little soldier/, like you and me, /because with a little but sufficient ability to checkmate/ and win the game by planning out my tactics/ and encountering the coincidences along the way,/ I may somehow work my way up/ until the last rank and become a queen /at the end of the game. /The world is not fair, /but it doesn’t make it any worthy of living. /So, go play /with what you have carefully but boldly /at the same time/ to unleash the unknow possibilities of life, /or change the game. /Thank you.