Storytime: “I need a big jigsaw, like 5,000 pieces and it’s got to be hard, the harder to do the better.” My 50-something customer the other day was clear in what they wanted. We looked through several jigsaws and eventually found a suitably difficult 5,000 piece jigsaw. “This is perfect,” she said with a big smile, not worried about the $170.00 price list.
“I can barely do a 500 piece jigsaw let along a 5,000 piece one,” I said, as I bagged the jigsaw. “He’ll never finish it,” she said. She could see I was confused. “It’s for my dad. He died after a long illness. Jigsaws were his thing. He loved them. I had promised to bury him with a difficult 5,000 piece jigsaw. This one is perfect. It will sit in the open coffin at the funeral.”
At the counter of the shop every day our customers surprise us with their stories and with how far they take us into their lives and how they express themselves to their loved-ones. I’ve only ever seen a jigsaw as something to finish and here it is as a perfect memorial for a dad who will be missed. #jigsaws #sympathy #memorial #family #love
