Puzzle
“Sit long. Talk much.”
Practice
Select a puzzle and a place. Consider a puzzle with enough pieces that requires multiple days to complete. Place it where its presence invites placing a few pieces each day.
Practice patience. Resist the urge to complete it in a single setting. Let the puzzle take the time it takes.
Invite collaboration. Observe how doing a puzzle with multiple people is a more communal process.
Reflect on the practice. Notice how a puzzle influences your pace and perspective during the Advent season.
Puzzles are a creative way of slowing us down. They invite us to look closely, be patient, and appreciate the process. In the season of Advent—a season marked by anticipation and the spiritual work of waiting—a puzzle can ground us in an embodied practice. A puzzle is a practice that reminds us that the process is as essential as the completed product.
The first hand-cut puzzles were crafted in 1766 by a London cartographer and engraver. He created them by mounting maps onto wood and cutting out pieces along geographic boundaries. They were invented to teach children about geography in an engaging way. Puzzles became popular in the early 1900s in America and were a must-have for vacation homes and social parties. During the Great Depression, puzzle makers made the switch from wood to cardboard to cut costs. This shift made mass-production of puzzles possible. Recently, there has been a return to heirloom-quality, wooden jigsaw puzzles.
Puzzles offer a shared invitation to participation. They are a practice where an unfolding picture is constructed by the contribution of many hands. A puzzle is quite countercultural. It is a tactile, time-intensive, and often mentally challenging practice. It invites a slowed pace and requires a patient mind. It is a remarkably grounding practice to be present to both the process and people.
Working on a puzzle during Advent is an embodied invitation to the intention of the season. Advent is a season of waiting with expectation, trusting the unfolding will come, slowly, piece by piece. A puzzle is a creative way of practicing watching and waiting during the Advent season.
This Advent season, consider the practice of building a puzzle. Ask family or friends if they have puzzles, and if they would consider exchanging them for the season. Set the puzzle in a place where when neighbors, roommates, family, or friends come over, there is an open invitation to participate. A puzzle provides an invitation to slowing, looking, and patiently awaiting what is to come.
