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September 1, 2005
A gentlemen’s game
Friendship with the roll of the dice
By Jeanne Carbone Lewis
Staff Writer
Some spend the early evening hours escorting their kids to soccer or watching the news on TV. But late in the afternoon until dusk every day, a group of local men gather at Almaden Lake Park to play an ancient game of strategy: backgammon.
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| A roll of the dice and good company happens every evening at Almaden Lake Park. Photo by Jeanne Carbone Lewis |
They have also perfected the art of conversation and friendship. But that’s not to say that they don’t take the game seriously.
“It’s really fun,” said Sam Haghvervi a 40-year resident of the United States. “We all live nearby and whoever can come by does for the games. Anyone can play the game but really it is all about the people.”
The group has been meeting for a couple years to engage in the daily games of luck and chance. Sometimes a couple of dozen show up, sometimes fewer. Whoever can attend does and that’s when the fun begins. The backgammon boards are set up and the winner plays the next person until all have participated. Some watch the game board with intensity, others chat among themselves at the serene park. They play until dusk.
On the day of the interview, the group included men from Iran, two from Iraq and a Greek, Guy David, who was excited about winning a competition for the first time. They are all married and bring their wives who walk the park and chat among themselves while their husbands play backgammon.
“There is no betting,” said Qardakh Mamo who has lived in the United States for seven years. “It is just for fun but it is a serious game.”
Sometimes the conversation is light and mixed with laughter while other times talk turns to serious current events. Mamo shares that he has a daughter who lives in Jordan and two others who live in Iraq where living expenses are high. He feels that the living conditions are gradually improving in the Middle East and is happy that American forces are there.
The boards are quietly played by duets while a handful of the men watch intently. Others laugh and talk with each other enjoying their friendship and the twilight to come. It’s a good way to spend an evening.
Backgammon is a game of luck and skill played by two people with 15 checkers on a board consisting of 24 spaces or points. A roll of the dice determines the moves of the checkers. Each player tries to bring his own checkers home first. It is believed that the board game’s origins date back 5,000 years with the ancient Greeks and Romans. The game we know today was refined in England in the 17th century. Backgammon enjoyed a large resurgence in the 1970s and then again in the 1990s with the emergence of the Internet. |
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