Our
newspaper has word search puzzles, and I work them to relax. I know I could
drag out my crossword puzzle books or Sudoku books for a more challenging
experience. The trouble with those types of puzzles is that sometimes I’m
stumped. With word search, I can, and do, always finish. After I complete the puzzles, I crumple the pages
and throw them in the trash, so I’m not sure why I feel compelled to finish.
I work
the puzzles willy-nilly where I circle the most obvious words first. I’ve found
that in word search puzzles, as in life, the simple words are the hardest to
find.
This
morning when I was searching for words, I realized that as a writer, I often
search for the best words. Stringing selected words in the correct sequence to
convey a thought is much harder than it seems.
In real
life, I sometimes find myself at a loss for words. When you know someone is
hurting, or troubled, or angry, sometimes it is better to say no words, or at
least a minimum of words. No one wants to hear, “I know exactly how you feel”
because you don’t. An angry person does not want to hear, “you are
overreacting” or “you are wrong.” If someone is troubled, she doesn’t want to
hear, “here’s what you should do…” Nope.
Sometimes,
I search for simple words—as in a thought I want to express. I can visualize
the correct word in my mind, but it won’t come out of my mouth. I have the same
problem with names of people I know, but they won’t topple off my tongue.
Searching
for words to call objects can be a sign of dementia. It can also be a sign of
an aging brain with overflowing figurative file cabinets and scads of misfiled
information. When we are young, all that stored information is easier to access.
As we age, I imagine our brains look a lot like a junk room where we have thrown
decade’s worth of useless debris.
I find
myself searching for more than words. I spend too much time looking for
countless items that aren’t where they should be, or they are in a “safe place”
where I put them so they could be found. Makes me understand why Jim kept
saying, “Right here, but I can’t find it.”
Often,
I search for meaning. Why does life deal us misfortune, pain, sadness, or
adversity? Those answers aren’t in the Why?
book that my grandkids used to love. With certainty, I can say that I don’t
question the blessings of life. My greatest blessing is, and always will be,
the people I love.
I seek
peace and relaxation. The only drama I want in my life is through the books I
read, TV shows, and movies.
I ask
for God’s intervention to keep me from letting the words spill from my lips
when someone rants on and on about viewpoints that border on insanity. I hope
He grants me the ability to mentally chant the Serenity Prayer instead of
listening or responding.
Let
everyone search for the important words: Love, kindness, peace, faith, and joy.
Remember, the simple words are the hardest to find, but if you don’t find them,
you can’t complete the puzzle.
Copyright
© December 2021 by L.S. Fisher
http://earlyonset.blogspot.com
#ENDALZ
No comments:
Post a Comment