When I was in third grade, my Dad gave me a book "How to Think Ahead in Chess". I have read this book many times and told people the book was about what opening you should play.

Having just finished reading the book again, I started rereading it right away. I was looking for how to play the middle game, not the opening, and thought maybe there was something I missed. Here is the first sentence of the book.

"This book has been written to show you what to do after the opening stage has been passed."

Did I miss the whole point of the book? Not exactly. Their solution was to learn one opening for white and two for black so you know what type of middle game you are going to play. I had gotten a lot out of the book, but even after reading it many times, there is a lot I have missed, like the first sentence.

Learning to dance is a lot like that. There is more there than we think. You cannot rush the process. You learn what you are ready to learn. You miss what you are not ready for.