Subtitle: Sentimental Journey
The Winged Map of the World is done....and is most certainly in my top 10 favorite puzzles! I wish you could see it in person....the colors are a bit muted....but oh such a beautiful butterfly effect!
I start feeling a little sentimental this time of year....so bear with me as I reminisce the pieces and parts of a sentimental journey.
Almost exactly two years ago....
Margie (my mother-in-law) put together this beautiful puzzle. It was a challenge....but she stuck with it....and it was the last puzzle she would ever do.
Just few days later she had a fall and broke her hip.
And just three weeks after that she passed away. It was all such a whirlwind of emotions and events....and it's all still pretty raw. Especially this time of year.
A week or so after Margie died I started this very puzzle. It was the right puzzle at the right time. I had a few issues along the way including dumping all the pieces...but just like Margie...I stuck with it. But in the end I was missing a piece and I was faced with the dilemma of whether to gift it knowing there was a missing piece. I loved all the responses I got in this post:
https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2024/11/would-you.htmlA month later....the piece turned up in the most unusual place...and it's one of my favorite parts of the story. Spoiler in case you don't link to the post...I found the piece in one of Margie's shoes. https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2024/12/a-good-laugh.html
I gifted the puzzle to my friend Becky with the newly found piece in the box. She had met Margie....and I knew she would appreciate the story.....and I always gift her a puzzle for the winter.
Low and behold several months later.....I was gifted the VERY same puzzle from Brenda...a mutual friend of both Becky's and mine. I was so appreciative...but I tucked it away knowing that I needed time and space before I tackled it again.
For the second time...it's the right puzzle at the right time. Maybe on some level Brenda knew that I would want to do it again...and I'm grateful. I've already started sorting the pieces into my album boxes...but I won't actually start putting it together for another week. Paul and I have company coming tomorrow evening through Wednesday...then we leave on Thursday for a little trip.
The time and space away will be good during this particular timeframe...and it will absolutely be the right time to start assembling this colorful puzzle when I get back. And I'll be thinking of Margie and our sentimental journey with her here in Maine the whole time I'm working on it!
Just few days later she had a fall and broke her hip. 
What a great puzzle story, MaryAnn ;))) Amazing how these things happen...
ReplyDeleteLove the butterflies--so pretty...
Thanks Julierose. We all have to be open to the "amazing" things in life. It's like joy....always there if we just are open to it.
DeleteMaryAnn, thank you for the gift of this tender vulnerable sentimental sharing at what is clearly just the right time. Even at my distance I have so many sweet memories of your connection to, activities with, and love for Margie. Enjoy your company and upcoming getaway!
ReplyDeleteThat butterfly puzzle is grand for so many reasons, not the least of which is your and Margie's both sticking with it : )
Thank for coming along on this journey with me. I know you understood how precious she was. Grand....is the perfect description of this puzzle. You always have the right words.
DeleteI remember when I started following you, MaryAnn, how much you loved and wrote about Margie. This story of her last puzzle is very moving and has such a delightful ending. It's really wonderful that you had such a lovely mother-in-law and now have such sweet memories of her. And I don't know how you ever finished this current butterfly puzzle, but it is absolutely beautiful! (and looks so complicated!) Bravo!
ReplyDeleteThank you Judy. Margie was an integral part of our lives....and I cherish those years with her here in Maine. The ONLY way I got through this puzzle was establishing order. And you're right....it's absolutely beautiful!
DeleteI read back through the posts you linked. I agree that the story couldn't have been manufactured - and your naming this as a sentimental journey post is perfect. We all need to remember and rejoice for those who have been part of our lives.
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time go read back Julie. Margie was a pretty special woman. She lived in Colorado most of her life and moved to Maine so we could help her with aging. We were lucky to have those 6 years with her close by.
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