Graded Go Problems and a lesson from HikaGo

I've added Graded Go Problems for Beginners, Vol.1 to my library. Although it was a planned acquisition from the beginning, I didn't actually get the book until now. My thanks to all of you who strongly recommended this book. I very much appreciate everyone's comments and assistance in growing this site and guiding my Go studies.

For the love of the game, I will be studying my materials seriously to advance as far as I can. As an older beginner with a family, some goals are more of a stretch for me. But for those of you who have taken their first steps at a much earlier age, remember that, in Go and in all aspects of life, success is often measured more as a test of the will (determination and perseverance) than as a test of skill.

The panel below (click it to enlarge) is an excerpt from a Hikaru no Go manga which illustrates what I just said. My daughter, ChiyoChan, is currently going through this series. Read the panel from right to left.


In it, Kaio's Go team captain explains that the great gap between Hikaru and Akira isn't in their playing abilities but in the intensity by which they try to achieve their goals. Akira poured himself into preparing for a rematch with Hikaru/Sai in the junior high tournament. It's an awakening moment for Hikaru as he realizes his "Someday I'll catch up to Akira" attitude will take him nowhere and will never narrow the gulf between their abilities. It is at the end of this chapter that Hikaru makes the decision to pursue Akira with the same ferocity.