Edges of the Puzzle

Ian sighed and moved his wheelchair closer to the table. "Blaine, hang on. We have to put the edges of the puzzle together first, or else it will be harder to find where the other pieces go. Can you find some flat edges?""But I want to put the doggy together!" Blaine whined."You can, but first we have to find the edges." Ian started turning pieces over."But I want to put the dog together!" Blaine slouched in his chair."I bet I can find more edges than you," Ian said, slyly reaching for a piece."No! I can find more!" Suddenly grinning, Blaine began searching through the pile of pieces."Can I help?" Renee, the fifth of their six sisters, stopped by the table."No, you need to get your math problems corrected," Mom said, tapping the counter. "Come here."Ten minutes later, the puzzle was finished and forgotten, and Blaine and Renee were outside, building a snowman with their sisters Maureen and Cecilia while Ian watched them from the patio door."Thank you for being patient with Blaine and keeping him occupied so I could finish correcting your sister's schoolwork." Mom noticed Ian's face. "What's the matter?"Ian backed his wheelchair away from the door. "I just wish I could be out there with them." He looked down at the casts on his legs. "Why do my legs have to take so long to heal?""They have to form osteoclasts and osteoblasts and rebuild what's been broken." Mom smiled at Ian's grimace. "That's what you get when your mother was a nurse. I know it's hard, but I also know you can persevere.""It's the persevering I'm not good at. I just get restless and irritable.""Like Blaine. You'd rather be putting together the dog than finding the edges." Mom tapped the puzzle. "But skipping the edges would leave the puzzle unfinished. I know it's hard to be patient, but God will give you grace to get through it. Remember that He's working on a bigger picture than what we see, but we know what it will look like when it's finished--it will be perfect, and we'll never have to deal with pain or sickness ever again. Until then, Jesus will be with us through every trial and will help us be patient as He puts all the pieces of the puzzle together." – Ellie Shirk