It started out like this....
And ended up like this!
And I did it all by myself!
A few weeks ago, Joe had to work unexpectedly during the night and after Taelin was in bed, I found myself in a strange place...looking for something to do. I fiddling around on the computer for a little bit, pushed some scrapbook paper around, and picked up and put down a book before I remembered the puzzle that I bought way back when I first made my list. I cleared off one of the tables I have for scrapbooking and set myself to the task of building the puzzle.
I remember there were times during my childhood that we would have a puzzle going and there have been times when on vacation at a rental house where we will tackle a puzzle but it isn't something that I have going on at home. There is an element of bringing order to the chaos that I appreciate about puzzles, but there is also a point where there doesn't seem to be a way to contain all the chaos (usually after the border is done and the obvious chunks are taken care of) that I tend to wander away from a puzzle.
I worked for a few hours the first night and then again the next night for a little while but then got to the point that wasn't easy anymore and didn't come back to it for a few weeks. But last week I found myself again with some time (this time a sick kid that was actually napping in the middle of the day for a HUGE chunk of time) and I got back to it. I got some more things sorted and those pieces that I was so sure didn't belong the the puzzle I was working on actually ended up fitting somewhere. A few more nights (one that had me up until 1:00 and "watching" Karate Kid 2 twice in a row) and I was finished.
As I worked I did have some time to let my mind wander which was welcome. There have been some occasions where I think I give up too easily, a reaction to the times that I didn't give up and should have just surrendered way before I did, and as I worked on the puzzle I thought about how delicate that balance is. When do you decide to do something different when what you are doing isn't working? When is it "giving up" and when is it "moving on"? When is it "quitting" and when is it "trying something different"? When is it "you have a responsibility to others" and when is it "you have to take care of yourself"?
All that time thinking has helped me reach some clarity and I think I would eventually gotten to the same place but without that time unplugged from my to-do lists and responsibilities I am not sure when that time would have been. I am feeling at peace with my decision and so far, even though there are some uncomfortable parts to it and more to come, it has made a difference.
It seems like from the last couple of paragraphs that it was all super serious thinking time, which I can assure you it wasn't. Particularly during the evening that I watched Karate Kid 2 twice there were some pretty awesome karate moves and some sweet dancing to montage when Ralph Macchio and Yukie were flirting their way through the Japanese coast. (It is on Netflix streaming for those of you that now just have to go watch it.)
All to say that I enjoyed doing the puzzle. I may even go out and get another one after awhile. I don't think I would particularly enjoy doing the same puzzle twice so I don't think I am going to go crazy getting a lot of puzzles but I am glad that I did it and will surely do it again!
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