What I Learned From Completing a Gradient Puzzle
Yesterday I completed my first 1000-piece gradient puzzle. It took me about ~7 hours to complete over the course of 5 days. I’ve always wanted to do a gradient puzzle and thought quarantine/social distancing during this time of Corona was the perfect time. Working through this puzzle was an experience that I wanted to write about because it felt different from the other times I did puzzles. I decided to document my reflections because working on this puzzle feels like a metaphor for life.
When I opened the box, I felt slightly overwhelmed by the colors. I found all of the outer pieces, but realized that I needed to organize generally by color groups that stood out to me. I chose green, purple, blue, and pink. It took me a really long time to group the pieces and I was completely exhausted after that. I realized in that moment that completing this puzzle will taking me longer than I expected and that I would need small wins to keep me motivated till the end.
The next morning, as soon as I completed the outer pieces, my dogs excitedly ran up to me and messed it all up. I felt sad that some of the work I did the previous day went down the drain, but I reminded myself that this small unexpected event was just a detour. I placed the puzzle on a table to make sure this wouldn’t happen again. Lesson learned.
I realized pretty early on that I could only work on the project during the day with a lot of bright natural light. It was the only way I could see the slight variations in the colors. Many times I had to stand up and look at the pieces from a very specific angle to see the colors clearly. It reminded me that sometimes the conditions just aren’t right for you to do something no matter how hard you try or want it to happen. Isn’t this life? We don’t always get what we want and SOMETIMES persistence & hard work doesn’t always lead to the outcome you want. There can be other factors at play that’s out of your control.
There were moments when I would spend 10-15 minutes trying to add 1 more piece to the puzzle and moments where 5 pieces would fall right into place. When I hit a wall, I chose to step away for a bit. When there was momentum, I worked even harder. Life is like that too. There are ebbs and flows. It’s okay to take a break and it’s important to capitalize on moments when you are inspired & energized.
I was beyond happy when I dropped in the last piece of the puzzle. I felt my entire body relax and took a deep breath. I looked at the completed puzzle and thought “wow, this is really pretty”! I felt proud and joyful. It was a reminder that accomplishments, no matter how small are worth celebrating.
I know this might sound ridiculous that I chose to write about my experience completing the gradient puzzle, but I really experienced a spectrum of emotions completing this damn puzzle. So many nice reminders to keep me grounded during these uncertain times.
