The Year Of The Puzzle

Last year was a grounding one for most of us. Prior to 2020 most of us found ourselves consumed by "hustle culture", we were never doing enough. Never seeing friends and family enough, never working enough, never exercising enough, and we were all perpetually exhausted (if this wasn't you, then you can probably skip ahead). We had no idea how disconnected we were from our priorities until everything was taken away from us.
During 2020 many of us found ourselves with the free time we hadn't experienced in many years, maybe even decades, and with little to fill it with, found ourselves prioritizing our mental health (something crucially needed during a time of such chaos, instability, fear, and stress). This led to people discovering hobbies like yoga and meditation, activities that allowed their brains to have a break.
And that my friend, is how puzzles re-entered the picture.
As I've referenced in several blog posts at this point, a massive benefit to putting puzzles together is their ability to slow the brain to and let it enter a meditative state. Many people, like myself, struggle to complete the typical meditation of sitting in place and emptying your mind, so completing jigsaw puzzles allows for you to still be actively doing something while giving your brain a break.
Now, as life is seemingly taking steps to return to "normalcy", those who discovered how enjoyable puzzling is, have continued on with the hobby as a way to give themselves a moment to exhale during the day.
So next time you feel like you need a break, don't have a KitKat, work on a puzzle.
And heck.... why not get an "It's More Than A Puzzle" while you're at it?