Words by: Anonymous
Art by: Parisa Sarmady 

Our relationship first began back in lockdown when I felt I had exhausted all my other options of entertainment and satisfaction. At first, I only dabbled occasionally, half out of boredom and half out of intrigue. But the more time I spent, the more I fell in love, until eventually… I was absolutely hooked.

That is the story of how I discovered my love for puzzles.

In a world where it is tough to catch a break from technology and social media, I set myself a goal of picking up some more ‘non-technology-related hobbies’, one of which included completing puzzles. At first, I didn’t think I would actually love puzzles as much as I turned out to, I just did it to satiate boredom and because it seemed to be up there on the list of primitive activities to do at home when you have exhausted every other option. I realised that even though building a puzzle is nowhere near as fast-paced or flashy as scrolling on my phone, it is just as addictive and relaxing for me when I need some downtime and am sick of everything available on Netflix.

I know I am not really the target demographic of puzzles, and that perhaps I’d have more chance of relatability in the senior’s department. I have a total of one friend who also enjoys puzzles, so I can’t really say that this new hobby has brought me into a community — it’s more like a puzzle partnership. Luckily for me, I am a bit of a control hogger when it comes to arranging the pieces. So perhaps it doesn’t matter so much that it’s usually a solo expedition.

Perhaps puzzles aren’t your cup of tea, or maybe you’re thinking of giving them a try now. Either way, it is a reminder to step back from the chaos of our lives once in a while to slow down and practise some non-technology related hobbies. We are always so caught up with the little things. But when you take a second to breathe and look at the bigger picture, that is when all the pieces in life fall into place.