Schach

Getting calls from the school always make me nervous--your child is sick, why didn't he do his homework, we have a grave problem to work out (he isn't sitting properly on his chair when he plays the recorder!), it's only 80F, why isn't your child dressed properly in Strumpfhose?? So I was a tad apprehensive when I answered this afternoon. But it was only the leader of the school chess club. They played chess in fourth grade today, and the guy was rather surprised at how well my oldest played, the fact that he worked out strategies and really thought about it, etc. The signup for the chess team is over, but there is technically still one space left. They go to tournaments in different places and in the fall they'll attend a tournament with real professionals (from Hungary??), and play their own kids' tournament next to them. So, he was wondering if my son would like to join. I said we were leaving this summer, which would cut out the November event. And it might make it hard to work the team thing out after all. But we'll think about it. In any case, the guy suggested we find a chess club to stick him in. So we'll talk. One thing I really admire about my kid (aside from his chess savvy!) is the fact that he has a knack for keeping his life in balance. If he's full, he'll pass on dessert. If he's got a lot of activities going on, he'll pass up some he normally might enjoy because he doesn't want to overdo it. He's already in choir and recorder class, so I'm not sure what he'll decide. But still, it's nice to get a positive call now and then! (And he really is good at chess--beats me every single time.)