Last week Eric’s friend Terry, also a woodworker, brought the puzzle they had made for a protest of the Iraq war. It seemed time to bring it out again. They had the backing board on one of the tables, and a few pieces laid out. It was cool to hear them talk about making it and then having it out during a protest and in public spaces and the experience of people joining in to help put it together. There was no picture to follow, like you get with a regular size puzzle in a box, so those working on it had to figure it out as they went along. Using the grain of the wood on the non painted side of the pieces was one hint, and also that one end was the yellow and the other was the darker colors. This week it was all put together! It was neat to see it, although I was a little disappointed I missed the putting it together. (I know, we could take it apart and do it again.) What an amazing thing – as the individual pieces, and as the entire picture – the physical object itself and the meaning of it – and how something that seems so ordinary can actually be quite extraordinary.
