Musings of a Mongoose - 14. Puzzles

"Looking at the box is cheating"
Said the librarian
I was a lonely kid, and she was often alone herself.
It made sense to be in the library.
Stories made sense, and puzzles were starting to.
We put the pieces together, one by one, never looking at the box.
"But why?"
"You wouldn't want the cover of a book to ruin the experience, would you? Same with puzzles. You build the picture."
It was a lesson not in words, but in actions.
We started with the edges, laying the foundation, then filled the space between.
Piece by piece,
Connection by connection.
And when the last piece was placed, the whole experience came together.
I felt something then.
My favorite piece of the puzzle isn't always the last one though.
Sometimes it's the edge, because it's a new beginning.
Sometimes it's the corner, because that gives me dimension.
Sometimes it's the last, because it completes the picture.
But most often, it's the one I find stuck to the bottom of my shoe, that I've been searching for. The one that fills the hole I've been aching to fill.
It makes me angry at first, but then I remember
"Looking at the box is cheating"
I don't know what fills that space until I've found it,
And the reward of getting it right after so many tries is rewarding.
The future is unknown
But the pieces are falling into place.
And I think I finally have them all.
And that's what matters most.
The future awaits me.
Some assembly required.