Ok, so I walk to Bryant Park 42nd St. before meeting my mother for lunch on 46th and 6th. I find an old-timer on the library side who was sitting alone with a chess board and offense (White) in front him. I ask him if it was alright to sit and have a match with him. He smiled, let out a little laugh, stuck out his hand to signal me to sit in the empty seat, which was the defensive side (Black).
I was nervous. He asked me my name, I told him, “Choice,” and he told me his name was Charles. I nodded my head and shook his hand showing him respect for accepting my challenge.
While I was sitting down and placing my bag to my side, I see out of the corner of my eye, a movement. In a flash, in split second timing, with light speed, and without me even seeing him do so, he had reached across the board and removed my h7 pawn (King’s Side), and in the same swipe of the hand he removed his a2 pawn. By the time it took me to sit, set my bag down, and look up he sat staring at me as if nothing happened. Only when I looked at the board and noticed the two pawns missing – which were not missing only a second ago – did I truly notice what he had done. Bewildered, I said nothing and looked back him with a blank stare. As soon as I was about to ask if we were going to start without the pawns, as soon as I twitched a lip, he pulled his 2 fists from below the table and placed them at eye level in front of me. He said nothing and stared at me. I asked him, “Pick one?” He nodded to say yes. I picked his right hand, which was my left because I am a lefty. He opened his hand and showed the white pawn. It was a game before the game, his way of a fair decision as to which side we would control. He then turned the rubber chess board around so that I was sitting behind the white army of pieces.
Because I was nervous I blurted out to him that it was my first time sitting down to play in NYC. He chuckles and said, “(When) I win I hope you wouldn’t mind offering me a small donation. “I chuckled back and said I need to get back home on the train Sir.
I made my first move: queen’s pawn, e2:e4. He responded, and the opening game was afoot. Quickly we established our pieces, and my opening game seemed to have surprised him. After 5-6 moves we were into the mid game, at which time I made a crucial but wise sacrifice – my knight for his pawn opening up the right flank, or h file to attack his castled king. It through him off as I hoped it would and left him open to attack, and allowed me to establish, in the next two moves a strong and powerful position. He retreated, and I pushed with more pressure.
While at the beginning it was just he and I with nobody around us, by this time people began to gather around and watch as the game became more intense and fast. With good position, I knew I had to sacrifice more inventory to set up to capture his king. And so I did, and it through him off even more as he was up in inventory. He was wise enough to know I was up to something, and I was wise enough to know I needed to play aggressive to, have a chance against him.
Knowing I was close to checkmate and he was up in inventory he began to play his strong pieces and attack with full force, and he was smart to do so because he pushed to the point that he also placed me under great pressure. The onlookers watched quietly and did not move a muscle. Surrounded by people and across the board from a park player I became more nervous, but I kept my focus, as one wrong move and he would mate me with ease.
Suddenly, in the end game we were at each other’s throats – Queen to Queen, and my pieces were few but strategically placed so that there was no room for him to make a mistake. Quickly, I move my queen to place him in check and he had the choice to take my queen or retreat. However, knowing if he would have took my queen my rooks and my knight were in place to wipe out his fortress surrounding his queen. Every bit of me hoped that he would retreat in fear of losing his fortress and he did. He relocated his king and did not take my queen, at which point I stormed his beach.
I confronted him powerfully and with every bit of strength and strategy I had left on the board. Every move after was a check. He retreated again and again until I backed his king down to my king side. Finally, he was one move away from checkmate as he knew it. He took minutes to figure out how he let it happen, to try and figure a way out of the checkmate. He leaned back and folded his hand behind his head. He looked up and let out a big sigh of disbelief. He had lost, and my next move was the closing. Instead of letting me put him in checkmate, he leaned forward and said, “There’s no way around it, I tried to find a way out. You’ve won youngster.” I smiled softly, but every part of my insides were screaming with victory. My smile wanted to boast with pleasure but I did not let it.
An onlooker asked him why he did not take my queen when he had the chance. He explained to the guy that it was a trap. Had he taken my queen I would have closed on him soon after. In my head, I felt a sense of pride that he recognized what I had done. He told me he was impressed, and tipped his king.
I stood up, he stood up, we shook hands and I bowed my head and thanked him for the match and his time. He said it was a pleasure.
I grabbed my bag, and although I had defeated him, I reached in my pocket took out $2 and handed it to him. Once again, thanking him for a great game of chess.
As I walked away I jumped on the phone and called my mother immediately because I was supposed to meet with her a half hour before then. She said, “What happened Bump, are you okay?” I excitedly told her that I had just finished and won my first game ever in a NYC park. She laughed at me because I let out all the excitement that I held back while in front of the old man and the people surrounding us while we played. She said, “Great, I’ll meet you outside on the 45th side, and you can tell me all about it over lunch.”
Beautiful day in Manhattan-
Destroy & Rebuild 