Saturday, October 10, 2020

A Puzzler's Life

 


Usually, I choose a puzzle with a photo that makes me happy—maybe a memory, maybe a pretty place or maybe photos of something that gives me pleasure like books, or buttons or sea shells.  Finding the pieces to recreate that happiness is just one of the goals. 

First, it’s more fun doing a puzzle with a helper—it teaches families to work together on a common goal. An unfinished puzzle on a table invites others to find that elusive piece. Today, my cleaning lady paused in her dusting and found a piece or two.


I love the challenge. I have done puzzles bought at garage sales with no guarantee that all of the pieces are there.  I’ve done puzzles upside down with just the blank side.  I’ve done puzzles with out a box and no picture to guide me.  I’ve also done double sided puzzles.  They’re each a challenge to be conquered.


While puzzles require a lot of concentration, it’s a great activity when you have just a few minutes—waiting for someone to get dressed or waiting for an appointment.  I started doing them again when Dave was having chemo. Puzzling calms me.  It keeps my anxiety at bay.


Jigsaw puzzles have brought me a lot of satisfaction during my life but especially during the winter months and during Covid 19.  While some may point out that they teach delayed satisfaction, I see each piece as bringing me satisfaction. So much time searching. . . searching.  Then, like magic the piece appears.  A little like the lost lamb. . . . .

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Between Two Worlds

Most of my life, I've considered it fortunate that I was just ahead of the Baby-boom. Generally, the Baby-boomers were born between 1946 and 1964 after the fathers returned from World War II. It was a huge population explosion that has reverberated through American society.

This blog will be part history, part memories, part reflections of a retired teacher, but active "Senior". I have always felt like I straddled two generations forming a bridge. Sometimes I think like a baby-boomer, but sometimes I'm locked into my parents' Depression era thinking. I'm a dichotomy of two eras. But, I'm always ready to try something new---so here I am dipping my toes in the water of Blogworld.