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200 words, change, children, community, courage, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, dreams, fame, family, followers, kings, leaders, mission, pawns, Purpose, recognition, together, tradition, values
At the end of the game, the Pawn and the King go in the same box. ~ Italian proverb
![Chess_king_and_pawns_thumb[4]](https://talktodiana.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/chess_king_and_pawns_thumb4.jpg)
I saw this quote on another blog the other day. It was one of 15 points to encourage readers as they move into 2014.
It got me to thinking how we sometimes believe that only the leader (king) makes a difference. It is (s)he who sets the agenda, calls all the shots and leaves their mark.
The rest are the followers (pawns), the ones who fulfill the wishes of the King.
Do we associate leadership with recognition and fame?
Does ground-breaking change only happen through those in high power or does it also start with someone on the ground floor who knows the lay of the land?
Sometimes those who change the world do so in secret. No red carpet is rolled out for them. No News team is dispatched to cover their story. No one even speaks their name when they’re gone.
Their work takes a life-time; one person at a time. Their values, dreams and traditions are passed onto their children.
And in the end the King and Pawn go in the same box.
~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~
talktodiana 
I love that quote. Some of the most impactful people in my life have been pawns (mostly by choice). Humility is so powerful and opens the doors to real change.
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and builds the foundation for trust…I love the quote too!
Good to see you Lorri – have missed you.
Diana xo
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It’s good to be back. I need to get back into the rhythm of posting.
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Great post. It gets back to the ‘man in the arena’ concept, doesn’t it?
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Yes, that’s true. I never even connected those dots!
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What a wonderful quote to highlight, especially for someone in your line of work, and for so many others. There is dignity in being a pawn, and much to be proud of. x
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I very much believe that those who get praise and recognition from their peers in this world have their reward. Those who have given and contributed in secret will have their reward in the next world.
Diana xo
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I definitely agree–history generally only records the deeds of the kings and queens, but my experience shows that the actions of every individual matter. We can’t generally recognize how important or trivial something is in the scheme of the big picture; the human viewpoint is limited. Here’s one of my favorite quotes–George Eliot, the end of Middlemarch.
“Her finely touched spirit had still its fine issues, though they were not widely visible. Her full nature, like that river of which Cyrus broke the strength, spent itself in channels which had no great name on the earth. But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs.
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Tracy thank you for sharing that quote – it’s so beautiful!
Diana xo
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So insightful. I love that quote, it’s so true, and it makes me feel a lot more proud to be a pawn. 😉 Great post Diana!
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thank you mselene for visiting my blog and leaving such a lovely comment. ❤
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I love this post! Thank you for this wonderfully insightful observation of a powerful quote. I agree that great change is often started and implemented by those who go unnoticed, those on the ground level, the ‘pawns’. I should be so lucky! Thanks again for this delightfully inspiring post today Diana. Blessings, Gina
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Thank you so much. Don’t sell yourself short Gina – your blog is nothing short of a movement toward peace!
Diana xo
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Interesting post and to read all the comments too.
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Thanks. In the comments I always find different and new perspectives. We all see things in a slightly different light, don’t we?
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I guess that king/pawn is a leadership style, but in my opinion it’s a problematic leadership structure. it often ends with passive/aggressive behaviors by the “pawns”–whereas the entire organization would be more successful if more collaborative leadership styles were employed.
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Collaborative equals empowering to me. And I like that very much. Sometimes people use collaborative as meaning concensus and I’m not a fan of that at all as it is very hard to get anything done! Thanks for this perspective Sheryl!
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The workers at the bottom seldom actually get the recognition they deserve… the Kings tend to take the glory and claim the achievements of the pawns, who then are only considered as mere workers who without the Kings could not perform…. this is just so not true… Kings must remember without the support of the pawns they are nothing themselves…
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Everyone is necessary and important. Here in Alberta we have had an increase in folks getting a post secondary education, many hoping for leadership positions and at the same time we have a serious shortage of Trades people.
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In the non-profit world that I abide in, one of the goals is to become an “Agent of Change” I myself hope to take this job description and make a difference with the abilities I am blessed with. Thanks again for sharing your passion!
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That’s what I love about community Michael. We all take our individual gifts and offer them to the whole. I wish you success and joy!
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Yes I think we often do associate leadership with recognition and fame and that sucks because as the quote says at the end of the game we all go in the same box. Also we all fart yes I know that has nothing to do with the post but it popped into my head and I had to share
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Joanne! haha! Is it morning there? Are you already drinking???
Diana xo
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By the way, thanks for the Friday feature link post, Diana. A most pleasant surprise on a day which other things happened on the Friday..
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You’re most welcome Jean. I love your blog and that particular post allowed me to show off our beautiful Alberta!
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I never learned to play chess properly –partially because it required too much thinking (for me). It’s not the type of pleasurable recreational activity I like.
So maybe I don’t get into the king, pawn games deeply in life.
Oh well. What did we miss? 🙂
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That is a very good question! And as someone once told me, when someone says, “that’s a good question,” it generally means the answer is nowhere as good. 😉
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More chess talk … If the King thinks pawns don’t natter, ask him what he would think if they all left the board at the same time. I’m not proposing a strike, just a vivid example of who does the real work in any organization. Certainly not the King!
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So very true Ian and sometimes even the pawn starts a movement, yes?
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Most opening moves are Pawn moves, yes. But don’t get too carried away with the metaphor (especially if you don’t understand chess). The fact is, it would be perfectly possible to play a chess game with no Pawns at all. And it’s rare for Pawns have any real bearing at all on the all-important end game.
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Great quote!
Check this out: I’d say the Queen is the far more potent piece. True, the object of the game is to take the King, but he’s a cowardly and ineffectual piece. The Queen has the power of both Rooks and Bishops, making her both a deadly weapon and a desired target (for many players, losing their Queen pretty much means the game is over for them). The King can only move a square at a time (a big source of his ineffectualness), but the Queen: no limit!
Also, when you set up the game, the Queen “gets her color” (the White Queen stands on a white square, the Black Queen stands on a black square). The two kings stand on opposing colors. (Sorry, Lady Di: “colours” :))
It’s always cracked me up: Chess is a rather feminist game (or, at least, one about feminine power)!
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I never learned how to play. Thanks for sharing that interesting tidbit about the queen. 🙂
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Ah, well here’s another tidbit then: Pawns do have a reputation as lowly cannon fodder. (The other pieces don’t shed too many tears when Pawns are captured, and Pawn funerals are usually brief affairs with no catering, typically only attended by other Pawns in the immediate family.) But that doesn’t mean any chess player views them as unimportant!
Pawns have a special magical power on their first move. They can opt to move one square or two, and they can use that two-square move to take out another unwary piece (kind of a double magic power). They’ve often used to help control the important center of the board; they’re usually the first ones out onto the battlefield. There is also the fact that, if a Pawn manages to reach the far edge of the board (which takes only five or six moves) it can be magically instantly converted to any other piece!
So what’s great about the quote if you know chess is that Pawns are actually quite valuable for all their role as lowly cannon fodder! No wonder they get to share the same box! 😀
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As someone who never learned to play chess, this is quite helpful information – thanks!
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You are so right , thanks for reminding us!
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You’re welcome. Thanks for stopping by Ute!
Diana xo
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I love this quote, and I think I’m going to be pondering it all day. ❤
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So many places and ways to use this proverb, don’t you think?
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Yes, thinking about how I can and should apply it to my life. 🙂
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At the shelter where I used to work there was a former client who became a janitor and worked at the shelter for years until cancer stole his life. He was one of the greatest leaders I’d it with grace and dignity, he treated did, he did it with grace and dignity, he treated everyone with kindness and respect. He changed the world for the better every day.
Hugs
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Thanks for sharing this story Louise, the heroes of the streets, I saw and was inspired by many as well!
Diana xo
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love it 🙂
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So glad you like it!
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Well said!
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Thanks Lisa!
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I hope that I can be the Pawn that the world needs me to be. x
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You already make a great difference in this world with the work you do with youth, the way you make yourself vulnerable on your blog so that others who struggle with darkness are not alone….
Diana xo
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