Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Trinkets and Treasures - No. 7



This chess set was a gift from my daughters many, many years ago, and I've treasured it from the moment I saw it. I love the carved wood, the colorful tiles, and, especially, the feel of the soapstone pieces. The king lies heavy in my hand and stands slightly taller than the length of my palm.




It's been quite a while since I've had a chess partner, so this beautiful set has been folded up and stored on a shelf among other games and puzzles that don't have nearly as much  sentimental value. It really deserves its own place of honor.




In the last games that really stand out in my mind, my worthy partner was my then eight-year-old grandson (who recently turned 22). At the end of one game, as we were setting up the board for the next, he paused, holding a chess piece in his hand, a seriously thoughtful  expression on his face. "Grammy," he asked, "when you die, can I have this chess set?"

I loved that moment. There was no sense of urgency in his request, and I was delighted to know that he was enjoying himself enough to ask such a question.




I'm going on record here that when that time comes, the chess set goes to Koby.

5 comments:

  1. Velvet or Linda! I notice lots of puzzles on those shelves. Pop loves puzzles and he has one going all the time. His grand girls help him when they visit. The one he is working on now is 750 pieces. We played dominoes growing up and most of us were really good at math. I am sure the playing "played" a role in our ability.

    Reading was also a huge past time for the sisters. Our first tv--sister Patsy bought for us with money she saved while working at Branson, MO. I think the year was 1959 It was our xmas gift from her, plus, she gave each of us an individual gift to boot. I got a King James Rev. of the Bible which I still cherish!

    Many of the things I cherish today...would not hold much monetary value...but to me they are priceless!

    This will say school time but I am Sister 3...just still at work! I am not going to be saying that many more years, but I think I am going to stick around one more!

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  2. That is certainly something to treasure and I love that your grandson wants it!

    You sure have a lot of puzzles-wish we could swap some and return them when we're done. Do you have a favorite?

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  3. Holly, he's still sweet, though the manly man part of him probably wouldn't want to hear that.

    School Time, I've missed you over here, though I still check your blog every day. When I think back about all the things we did to pass the time when I was a kid, I wonder what kind of memories today's kids will have. Will they remember Wii as fondly as we remember dominoes and jigsaw puzzles? And paper dolls?

    Janet, almost all of those puzzles are old but unopened, purchased three or four years ago when I was really on a puzzle jag. Now that we're talking about it, I'm getting the urge to open up a box and start one in the next day or two. I recently gave away a bunch of puzzles; wish it had occurred to me you might want them. It was you who turned me on to jigzone.com, so I should have thought about it.

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  4. Oh, that's OK! I don't do puzzles too often. There's something about winter days that gives me an irresistible urge to do jigsaws-remember last winter I did three of them? I bought a fourth one but didn't open it, saving it for this winter. Then I'll do the ones I did last winter.

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