Magic Tree of Life

With hours to kill a challenge was accepted. It was too hot to step out of the house. We were all fasting and the breaking of fast was about five hours away. Our mission — to kill time. How? We would attempt a 1000 piece puzzle. Enthusiastic and all geared up to finish it in time to celebrate completing it and this horrendously long day of fasting, we sat down to it.

Three minds, six hands, we got this. We even moved some furniture around and fixed the lay of the land in order to make this work. This was a first for all of us. It is said that the solving time range for a thousand piece puzzle is between 5-12 hours, with the average time being 9 hours. If you are an experienced puzzler you should be able to complete it in 5-6 hours. We cannot call ourselves experienced puzzlers but we all have experience in making puzzles. Plus we all have problem solving skills and are excited to work as a team. So let’s get started.

The easier step first. Make the frame by piecing the edges together. As the pieces connected there was a subtle curve and that’s when we actually realized it’s a round puzzle. None of us had ever made a round one so this turned up the fun level. We also turned up the volume and added some fun music in the background. A welcome change from the useless hours of screen time. Once the frame was done though, that’s when the brain was tested. Adult puzzles aren’t meant to be easy. A large bag full of tiny colorful pieces that all looked the same. The image was not easy to section off. Thankfully the pieces were coded almost like a cheat sheet. So we began the task of separating by alphabets which were printed on the back of the pieces.

Two hours in and we were only about 150 pieces out of 1000 in. Three hours to breaking our fasts. Everyone’s heads were getting heavy and stomachs were grumbling. We all step back for a break. Each one lying on the couch grabbing our respective devices and clearing our headspace. Two hours of staring at tiny pieces that look identical does that to you.

Then one of us decides to get back to it. Breaks over. A few more pieces snap in place and the excitement spreads to the rest of us. Suddenly all three of us are back to concentrated problem solving. Before we know it five hours have passed. Are we done? No. Far from it. But we were proud to be halfway there.

The muezzin’s call to prayer is heard and we all abandon our spots around the table. A much needed break for our minds. Two hours later we were stomachs full and a little tired. But we realized we cannot sit around our work table for too long ignoring it. So slowly one by one we all found our ways back to the puzzle. By the time we were ready to call it a night, the puzzle was three quarters of the way complete.

The next morning we were back at it again. Having slept on it we realized one thing. Our ability to spot the intricate details on the pieces had improved therefore we were fast to finish it. As the last piece was put in we all did a victory dance. A few claps as we stood back to admire what we had accomplished. A splash of beautiful colors intricately woven together. A glance at the box showed that it was titled The Magic Tree of Life. It truly was magical the way those tiny pieces found their way together.

This puzzle had been borrowed so there was no chance to frame it but it truly looked like a piece of art. Had it been framed it would have had a story. A story for the three of us to remember. About 9 hours of discovering each other’s patience levels and music preferences. Hours of chatting and laughing. Even when it was frustrating it was weirdly therapeutic. A magical memory of our tree of life.