Overcoming stressful circumstances!
Some of you already are aware I’m in Sao Paulo, Brazil, but for those who don’t I’m here for a couple of reasons. I used to live in Brazil for 17 years until 2003. In my early days I ran a start-up English school catering for executives for some international companies like Deutsche and Citibank. It was an exciting change from English life, on the other side of the world in tropical climate with monkeys climbing trees for bananas! Until recently English people have asked me why an earth would someone return to the UK with such miserable weather. Isn’t it incredible how everyone thinks the other side is better? Actually, they had a point, so at the beginning of the year I moved to Miami. My third continent the USA inspired me as it was time for a change, so if anyone wants me to compare the three; I’d have to say there are significant differences. I love them all for one reason or another. When traveling to either destination good memories flow, and having previous experience allows me to choose the right direction. I played a lot of chess at school and also in my first job after leaving for a London based insurance company where five long years were spent. You don’t have to be the best; will power to compete against those more often than not better than me was the norm. I suppose I wanted to come down to earth and aim at ongoing improvement. Either that or I enjoyed being beaten and to some degree I was a masochist. Actually, I think I thrived off being made look a fool! When I immigrated to Brazil I joined the Hebraica club and participated on Saturday afternoons playing chess against other members. I remember the occasional tournaments when my head felt like it would burst. The pressure can be rather stressful and tiresome, especially as my threshold as an active guy meant wanting to get it over with; competitions are longwinded. I think many students nowadays prefer sports to sitting in a classroom awaiting the bell to strike, so they can leave as quickly as possible. It was an amazing event. There I was eager for a game of chess when all of a sudden I’m getting a spanking from a Grand Master who could be my son. After being asked how does it feel I asked Andre for another game, which I lost rather rapidly. Afterwards others played him, but no one could beat him, so it wasn’t such a bad experience. To the contrary it was a real honor. Imagine me losing 2-0 playing CHESS against a 19 year old. Play the best and learn from the experience!
Blog 55
To cut a long story short I couldn’t wait to drive to the Hebraica and play mini-five minute chess tournaments. On arrival l parked the car, ordered an espresso to get fired up, and walked into the upstairs chess club. There were two wooden tables occupied with pairs playing against the clock, there was another table set-up with pieces, and a young guy sitting on one side and a lady standing on the other. A bunch of people with camera equipment stood around the entrance door. I hardly noticed it because my focus was to use my brain and play chess.
I asked the teenager if he wanted to play, but he shrugged his shoulders and lifted his hands to say no. Then the lady in her mid to late twenties said we are going to film it; would you like to participate. Again from my prospective I wanted to play chess, so if that is what it was going to take I agreed. They waffled on and at that moment the Portuguese language didn’t seem to make much sense. Eventually the whole crowd left the room and I tagged behind them.
Rabbi Jose joined us and recommended a light spot outdoors between the four swimming pools, one indoors and the rest outdoors, including one Olympic. The food court wasn’t far away. Someone mentioned a table, so the teenager who wasn’t playing went with me to fetch one from the burger bar. He had a blue sports shirt with the club’s emblem and diamante written on the back. He said while bringing the table over, “You’re older than me. What happens if you beat me?”
We set it up right between the trees in a bright area, set the board, and we played five minutes each side. As he was young I thought it would be easy, but as we progressed, surprisingly enough I made a few elementary mistakes, or he really was on form. After some twenty moves he check mated me. If that wasn’t enough of an embarrassment it was being filmed. A dark haired woman with a large microphone came up to me, and said in Portuguese, “What’s it like being beaten by Andre Diamant, the Brazilian Chess Champion?”
On one hand I admitted he was very good, and on the other I was thinking, ‘Wow, isn’t it strange how I played without realising who he was. The fact I thought I’d annihilate him, and the fact that if I had known he was good I may have been panicking. So it just goes to show we are influenced by what we think, and how emotions are affected by our feelings. Here I am feeling embarrassed as I lost; but now I’m privileged to lose marginally to the champ. Cool I’ve played the best!’
Categories: General
Tags: Brazil use my brain chess emotions
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