Life is like a giant jigsaw puzzle, and every piece plays a part

Here we are in a new year. A time traditionally to set goals and make resolutions. It may also be a time of relief.

We have come through the darkest time of the year, and the days are getting longer. What a wonderful experience with everything in its place.

Or is it? How are you feeling? To-do list too long? Too many demands on your time? Too many requests from people? Have you ever felt as if your life is a jigsaw puzzle with the pieces all dumped out  of the box? How can they ever be sorted? Are you left puzzled on where to even start?

There are all kinds of puzzles in the world where we have to pay attention in order to make the pieces fit. Crossword puzzles are about putting the right words in the right boxes, Sudoku needs making sense of numbers. And Wordle! How many five-letter words can you sort through? Some require logic, some intuition, but all require patience and hope.

Vaclav Havel wrote, “Hope is not the conviction that something will turn out well but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out.”

So let’s take a look at the jigsaw puzzle called “The New Year” with the certainty that we can make sense of it.

When we open a new jigsaw puzzle box, all the pieces are jumbled together. We can’t see the big picture except on the lid. We hope we can put it all together. In the big picture, there is light and dark, there are pieces that fit together and some we think will not fit at all. It makes sense to start with the edges.

Facing our life situations with hope and conviction that things will turn out well will help us see the beginning and find the steps for the life we want. If we create definite boundaries, both in the puzzle and in life, we find that what we put in place starts to make order out of chaos.

Instead of resolutions, we may begin by setting healthy limits on our time. Not feeling that we have to do everything all at once means making clear choices one piece at a time, one day at a time. I’ll do this today. The other can wait for tomorrow. We can always ask ourselves, “What is mine to do today?”

Healthy limits with family and friends create the space to say yes or no for our own well-being. Writer Paul Coelho said, “When you say ‘yes’ to others, make sure you’re not saying ‘no’ to yourself.”

It is OK to say no. To misquote a famous saying, “Good boundaries make good friends.”

As we solve the puzzle called our life, let’s remember that each piece has a purpose and a place, each one adds to the beauty and the meaning of our lives, and every piece is part of the bigger picture. Have fun putting your puzzle together.

The Rev. Linda McNamar is a Laguna Woods Village resident.