Organize and play

The other day I was at the dollar store and saw jigsaw puzzles - 500 piece jigsaw puzzles.  I was very pleasantly surprised that the puzzle I purchased for $1.00 was well made and enjoyable to put together.  All the pieces interlocked and although the pieces were small, they were just the right size to have them all within reach.

But, I was feeling guilty that I was not working on any of my many, many projects.  So I made labels and sewed them on some recently completed quilts.

A burst of energy hit me yesterday and today so I started a much needed project - re-organizing and folding all my fabric neatly.  Here are the reds, greens, blues and purples.

Today I worked on the beiges, golds, browns, patriotic, flowers, black & white, novelty, whites, flannels, and stripes.

When I took breaks, I worked on an expensive puzzle that I purchased at a book store.

This puzzle was hard to do and I did not like it anywhere near as much as the little puzzle from the dollar store.  These pieces interlocked, but if I breathed wrong they would come apart.  There is a lot of detail and therefore looked like it would be easy, but the details were so small that the pieces were hard to locate on the picture.  Guess who is going back to the Dollar store! ! ! 

This morning I had an "aha" moment while I was doing some journaling.  I worry about all the projects I have to do and about all the fabric, counted cross-stitch, yarn, and crafting supplies I purchased during my working years.  I have felt like I need to use it all up and had set a goal for myself (a few years back) of being done in five years.  Well, I realized this morning that my goal is impossible. There is no way I could possibly finish all the cross-stitch projects, use all the fabric, knit all the yarn, or make use of all the craft supplies.  Nor can I read all the books I have at home.  Nor can I get the house as clean as I think it should be or as organized as I envision in my day-dreams.  My "aha" moment came when it hit me that this is a very good thing!  If I weren't working on my projects and crafts, and if I weren't doing jigsaw puzzles or reading, it would mean that I was too old, too infirm, or disabled. 

 So today I am extremely grateful for the long, long list of things To Do.