A Bag of Puzzle Pieces

A bag of puzzle pieces

How interesting it can be!

No picture for reference

Nothing for the eye to see

Pour them on to a table

Hope all of them are there

Marvel at the shapes and colors

The curiosity is too great to bear

Where to start?

How to begin?

Start with the edges

Work your way in

Which side is up?

Which side is down?

Try to orient the borders

Then turn it around

Slowly a picture is forming

A scene comes into sight

You have a reaction

Is it disdain or delight?

You ponder the question

Will this be worth preserving?

Maybe this is wasting precious time

On something undeserving

Never one to turn from a challenge

You continue placing the pieces

Thinking your efforts are enough

To remove all the defects and creases

Walking away is now not an option

No way to abandon this strange work of art

Created by another's hand and put into pieces

You merely choose to keep it close to your heart

The last piece is fitted

The puzzle shellacked

Framed and hanging on the wall

You are left taken aback

This puzzle was fun to assemble

The mystery exciting to unfold

But now the picture is obtrusive

Growing on you like toxic mold

You ponder taking it down

But allow the wall to yellow around it

After all your work and dedication

You feel you are bound to it

Friends come and go

Each one has to inquire

Why are you keeping it?

There is nothing to admire

That’s when it dawns on you

What was I thinking?

Time was wasted putting together

A puzzle of a ship that is sinking!

This picture of the Titantic is for illustrative purposes only and is not at all the subject of this poem.