Over breakfast this morning, Rog likened Life to a puzzle. You work on a little section here, then move on to putting a little section together there. Sometimes you have to remove a piece as it seems like it’d fit better in another place. But you keep working on sections, and eventually all the pieces fit together correctly, revealing a beautiful picture.

I thought of how I used to work on jigsaw puzzles with my elderly father – I’d simply form the small, irregularly cut but straight-edge pieces in the outer frame first and then the rest of the puzzle pieces seemed to fit pretty easily. I realized that we played with only 50 or 100 pieces but Rog had been thinking more in the 5 million range – after all, this is Life we’re talking about!

Perhaps Life is like a tapestry, “a heavy hand-woven reversible textile used for hangings, curtains, and upholstery and characterized by complicated pictorial designs.” Weaving one might be intricate and complicated, but in the end, a beautiful design is revealed.

And, what about Life being like a quilt, “a bed coverlet of two layers of cloth filled with padding (as down or batting) held in place by ties or stitched designs”? Perhaps a patchwork quilt, composed of miscellaneous or incongruous parts? The end result is a beautiful design.

Whatever your preferred analogy, what they have in common is that each has been planned in advance, with a complete picture sketched out in order for it to come out right. Each is full of details, richness, and beauty, and despite some snafus along the way – a misplaced puzzle piece, some material needing re-stitching – all works out well in the end.

I cannot say that I’ve consciously planned much of my life. Still, when I look back on it at 53 years of age, it has been and continues to be rich and colorful in a myriad of ways. When I realize that God is the Master Planner of my life, I know when all is said and done, everything is working out perfectly and beautiful – just like a puzzle, a tapestry, or a quilt.

That’s a peaceful, comforting feeling.