That Little Orange Piece

I can be a good patient, although most often retiring to my sick bed is a bitter sweet acquiescence to the higher power of my body. She chafes against the need to shift and reschedule, plan and re-order the business of daily routines, but never-the-less for this time, she gets to call the shots - and retire I must. For me, the trick to the 24- hour resting up and bedding down is planning what to do. Invariably there will be a stash of books on my bedside table, some interesting readings, something crafty for sure and of course puzzles! Puzzle-loving at heart, all manner of crosswords, sudoku, and bananagram are sure to keep me occupied for a while, and a recent brain squeezer that’s caught my attention is something called IQ Link.

With the brightly coloured shapes spread out over the ample folds of the duvet I endeavour to work through level number 75, not a beginner, but not yet a wizard either! The challenge was proving difficult… I tried fitting the various shapes by mentally aligning configurations in my head and then testing them out. I tried undoing my workings and then ensuring that the original pieces were in the right place. I tried fitting each piece with the fixed pieces to determine a logical sequence or pattern, but to no avail. Drifting off a while later, my sleep was fitful and uncomfortable until I found the thorn in my side - the little orange piece! Oh, how I needed it! I didn’t have all the information. I didn’t have the full picture I didn’t have the little bit that was hiding I couldn’t solve the puzzle I couldn’t complete the challenge It made me think how sometimes we are not able to complete a task or even start a task because something is holding us back. Something is not obvious, not presenting, nor apparent to us. Something is blocking the solution and possibly hiding important information. Perhaps sometimes we know what it is that we are wanting to hide, and we deliberately hide it and even though we know about this, are frustrated by the subsequent debilitating lack of forward movement. Being our authentic selves is about knowing, naming and embracing all of our parts and pieces. It’s about realistically accepting the bits that we like more than others, and the bits that we don’t. Surely, being authentically, imperfectly whole, is infinitely more satisfying and sustainable than leaving a much loved (and dare I say, much needed) part of us in darkness? ‘All of us’ is simply everything that we are and because of that, why not celebrate our wondrous uniqueness?

Do all the pieces fit for you?