News item: Bobby Fischer, great chess champion, died yesterday in Iceland at age 64. He had been a grand master since he was 15.
I grew up loving chess. When I was 12, Fischer beat Boris Spassky for the title. It was a source of great American pride. Then Fischer got weird with his actions. He became increasingly Anti-Semitic (although he was Jewish) and Anti-American. He became very reclusive.
What sticks in my mind is not Fischer himself, but the 1993 movie, Searching For Bobby Fischer. It is about a boy who is incredible at chess. I vividly remember a line in the movie where the father, played by Joe Mantegna, is pushing his son to be the best with despite what perhaps his son really wants. He says, “My son is better at chess than I have ever been at anything”. For me, this shows the hope that all parents have for our children to be better than we are. And the pride that we take in it. And unfortunately, sometimes, as the father in this story does, how we push our children too hard to achieve for our own selfish ego gratification.
I talk about in Bounce! how we are addicted to achievement. This goes not only for ourselves but for our children. Let us each follow our own dream and passion but let’s make sure it is our own. Let’s make sure that we do not push our hopes and dreams on our children….at least not too hard.
