A real Queen

In the game of chess, a queen is the most powerful chess piece. It is noted to be the most valuable yet, at the same time, the most vulnerable piece in the game. It is an ideal attacker while being at huge risk to the enemy. The queen piece in chess therefore has a strong attacking power that can strike and create multiple threats for the enemy and annihilate them single-handedly. Valuable and vulnerable… a difficult combination and one that deserves proper understanding.

Although I do not know much about pageantry, I do know how much we Filipinos love beauty pageants. We have had many beautiful strong women bring home the crown, fashioning their own signature moves and making known to the world their deep life changing advocacies. Our country representatives have all made us proud one way or another and, more than ever, we have seen how bravely they have fought to bring home the crown. Being a title holder is not just about honor – it is also about real power as whatever you say and do will show the heart of our nation. One can therefore only imagine the pressure that comes with a title. It is not just about the glamor. It is also about what you bring to the table and how you use your influence to unite a nation and connect to the rest of the world.

In everyday life, we are expected to be prudent about the things we say or do and it is our responsibility to fulfill such expectations as what we say, or what we do, can make or break relationships. Our words, our actions, just like the queen in the game of chess, has power and we do not have to be beauty queens to understand this influence. A mother’s words, for example, have power over the lives of her children as such words nurture, hone and build them into successful and whole persons in adulthood. On the other hand, hurtful, destructive words cause bitterness, disunity and chaos, leaving our children vulnerable to threats. While everyday is a learning, we continue to strive by doing better. We can fail, but we can also do better. For as long as the goal is clear, doing better will always be the motivation. We are not perfect people – none of us are; however, it is important to exert good effort in being the best we can be – one day at a time.

This effort right here is the act of bringing home the crown. We learn everyday and we win some and lose some. But life goes on. It doesn’t change our potential for as long as we put to practice what we can improve because our attitude in the season of winning or losing is what defines us. There is power within us and real queens will always rise again stronger and better, with the right attitude and with your heart in the right place.

Queens never “queen” over others. Real queens focus on improving themselves and continue to do good for others, even in their pain. Queens are the biggest givers even when they’ve been beaten to the ground and become even bigger givers when they rise. This is what makes them both powerful and valuable. Like in the game of chess, you learn how to use your queen through practice and understanding and the losses in between should only make you better.

Losing shouldn’t scare us… it may disappoint us but it shouldn’t scare us. That’s if one keeps her heart in the right place, regardless of defeat. A real queen in real life will always fix another queen’s crown and doing this is why you hold that title in the very first place. Valuable and vulnerable... two very important words to remember. Learn this and watch the Queen conquer.