Musings: Missing piece of the puzzle

Half a lifetime ago, I was visiting an elderly couple over in the Sugar Hill part of Franconia. I think I was on Ski Museum business at the time. It was one of those big old summer houses with heavy dark wood, and more rooms and stairways than one could imagine. It was easy to picture large gatherings of family, both indoors for meals and activities, and outdoors on the vast green lawn. These are the stately Victorian style houses featured in romantic novels and in old family scrapbooks found on the shelf.

In one corner, the lady of the house was working on enormous jigsaw puzzle. I forget now what image she was creating from the thousands of pieces, but I do remember that after a long season of careful work, she was very close to the end.