A chess grandmaster named Maleek
had not lost once since birth.
In search of a tough challenge he
played chess round the whole Earth.

Sailed way from home in Panama,
when he was just sixteen,
won gold cups in Brazil, Peru
and all countries between.

Gold at the Sydney Opera House,
and Hanoi, Vietnam,
by a blue palace in India
and Grand Mosque in Oman.

Sent his pawns upon their castles
then rode in his fierce knights
and once his mighty queen advanced
their king laid down in fright.

And yet this world conqueror was
actually so sweet,
consoling all his opponents
upon their swift defeat.

His new friends would bring him home for
a family dinner,
ate at the kids table where he
taught chess for beginners.

He toured around with different folks
who showed Maleek the sights,
but just sitting and conversing
to him was quite alright.

When off to the next tournament,
great memories were stashed
in the hull, with all his gold cups,
below his sailboat's mast.

The boat got all the heavier,
losing some of its zip,
to keep on schedule he tried
adding a second jib.


Won gold in Socotra, Yemen,
on the island’s wild shore,
on Djibouti’s salt lake there was
another gold cup in store.

He won all along the Red Sea,
then Lebanon and Greece.
Cross the Mediterranean,
his pile of gold increased.

That is, until he reached Malta,
in so pretty a place,
is where the toughest opponents,
were he ever to face.

At Mdina's ancient stone gate
lined with medieval swords
it was like stepping right into
a real, lifesize chess board.

He marvelled at the checkered stone
squares all along the ground.
The old arched gate looked like a rook,
topped with a royal crown.

This place, living and breathing chess,
hosted skillful players.
In fact, in Maleek’s first match he
only won by a hair.

The next match was that much harder,
which gave him a wide grin.
All of his life he'd sought someone,
who’d make it tough to win.

He later faced in the finals
another teen, named Dean,
with these two jet-black arched eyebrows,
eyebrows of someone mean.

“So here's 'The Great Maleek,’" Dean smirked,
“your winning streak is through.
As I'm the world's true chess marvel
who’ll finally beat you."

“Best of luck to you,” said Maleek,
extending out his hand.
When Dean refused to shake it,
jeers rose from the grandstand.


The match moved at a rapid pace,
our brave hero, Maleek
tried shifting pieces here and there,
but things were looking bleak.

His knights both bowed to Dean's bishops,
then fell his rooks and pawns,
Dean barged right through the defences
and Maleek's queen was gone.

Journalists began a-typing
while chess fans sat there stunned,
when Dean kicked back his chair and yelled
"I actually won!”

Dean bellowed a big belly laugh but
Maleek laughed all the more,
said, “That was a fantastic match,
the best of my world tour.

Could you spare a single hour to,
Share your wise thoughts on chess?"
So charmed by his humble foe, Dean
accepted the request.

After the game’s hoopla died down,
the two boys went for tea;
their minds together whirled and twirled,
talking chess strategy.

When at last their eyes broke contact,
the clock made Maleek sour,
the next chess match, in Majorca,
started in mere hours!


Worse yet was that in recent days
his boat was terr’bly slow.
The boat barely moved no matter
how hard the wind would blow.

The gigantic stash of gold cups
gave the boat too much weight.
Unless Maleek lightened his load
the next match he’d be late.

Dean schemed the most ingenious plan:
He’d buy his own sailboat.
If he carried half the baggage,
both boats would nicely float.

The two boys sailed the long sea with
their boats by rope attached.
Cruising at such great speed they made
the morn’s Majorca match.

They both entered tournaments in
Gibraltar and Tangier,
Maleek's skills were the sharpest that
they’d really been all year.

When he met Dean in a finals
they played as if entranced.
Spectators witnessed not attacks,
but something like a dance.

He surely could have gone home but
on the journey Dean stayed.
He got to love making new friends
wherever chess they played.

Their friends all saw that these boys had
chemistry together.
Just as their sailboats were hitched their
hearts were also tethered.

They played on England's River Thames
and France's Rue de Seine.
Central Europe’s Danube, Rhine, Elbe
and Oder before then.

Sailing to North America
in a near record time,
dashed to a match in Newfoundland
where they both played sublime.

Once they won cups in fifty States
and tropical Belize,
Maleek thought it the time to quit
sailing the seven seas.

Back in Panama, Maleek was
hailed a national treasure.
He chose to retire from chess and
live a life of leisure.

But first he melted all of his
valuable trophies,
distributing the bars of gold
to local charities.

With the gold where it belonged and
Maleek safe sound at home,
it was logical for Dean now,
to say goodbye and go.

But just the thought of parting,
felt so horribly wrong,
both boys knew where the other was
was where they both belonged.

Together they finished high school
and not long after then,
they knew that their relationship
meant far more than just friends.


As their wedding approached they mailed
out invites far and wide,
and their long list of distant friends,
all confirmed yes replies.

Both coasts of Panama were filled
with sailboats, yachts and ships,
the grooms were delighted to have
their many loved ones mix.

Kiwis toasted with Ghanaians,
monarchs drank with pirates,
an Egyptian sea diver danced
with a Dutch air pilot.

The grooms gave a speech bout how they
don’t travel anymore,
so they felt so very touched that
the world came to their door.

These grooms, who'd sailed the seven seas,
gave this rising sea pause,
a sea of those they held so dear,
flooding them with applause.












They adopted triplet baby girls
who grew like magic beans.
It felt like no time had passed before
the triplets neared sixteen.

So filled with wonderment were these
three loving teenage girls,
they loved to hear their fathers talk
bout journeying the world.

The dads spoke not of World Wonders,
not mountains, reefs or falls.
They spoke of all their many friends,
travel's best gift of all.

The girls soon craved their own travels,
so on the girls' birthday,
they each received a sailboat so
each could go their own way.

The three daughters sailed far away
on their own unique paths.
Their dads relished their travel tales,
when in time they came back.