Puzzle

By S. G. Dorrity

Emptied out, 
Falling into each other, stumbling and grasping for something to hold,
We were lost and missing a few,
Struggling to make that complete picture advertised on the box. 

Coming together, grouped and joined, 
It all started to become more recognisable, 
A vague shape in the clouds, comparable to the animals of our imaginations,
Shapes that no one else could identify. 

There was no real clarity, no definition to the image, but enough to guide, 
Enough to find the pieces that fit and miss those gone from the table, 
Those that left only gaps behind,
Holes in the image we worked so hard to create. 

Pieces of a puzzle with an image we couldn’t even see yet, 
An image we couldn’t quite prepare ourselves for, 
Expecting others and failing to understand the dynamic before us,
A process of completion that none could have anticipated. 

Rounded edges and fading colours, 
Connections creased and straining under the weight,
Time has taken its toll, the pain and burdens we couldn’t avoid, 
Days and weeks we’d rather forget.

But the image is complete. 
After so long… just for a moment, it was complete. 

Now, we’re being packed away, 
Collected and grouped, stacked and dropped,
Returning us to the packaging that we were first thrown from,
Smaller bags awaiting us this time.

Once pieces falling into place, an image to work on and perfect, 
But now we’re being torn apart, 
Separated and returned to our box, 
The image broken by cars departing in opposite directions. 

S. G. Dorrity is a writer and poet working across genres in the forms of poetry and short stories. They explore the changing of relationships over time, both between people and concepts, the interlinking of mythology, history, identity, and the realisations that emerge from a personal exploration of mental health.