Life - or facets of life - are perplexing, puzzling. I took a walk this glorious morning. The sun was shining overhead as birds darted from tree to tree or hunted for that juicy morsel just below the earth's surface. Squirrels scampered up and down sturdy tree trunks. Every once in a while, I'd pass a nameless neighbor, and we'd wave to each other in silent greeting. It was lovely to see nature waking from winter's slumber - trees starting to leaf out, the grass a verdant green. Those picture perfect lawns are a puzzle to me. Some people go to such lengths to make sure every blade of grass is cut just so, and, heaven forbid there be an errant splash of "sunshine" in the lawn. Our lawn is the bane of the neighborhood. We relish our sea of yellow each spring. Of course, our willingness to let nature do its thing is probably a puzzling sight to our neighbors. I suppose it depends on one's point of view.

As I contemplated this conundrum, my thoughts turned to Star Wars (not surprising since Celebration IV is just around the corner ). Luke clearly was puzzled by The Force, that mystical power that surrounds all living creatures, binding everyone and everything together. That must have been a perplexing idea around which to wrap his thoughts. "Huh?" I can imagine that quizzical response popping into his head as he questioned Ben, "The Force?" The more he learned about the wonders of The Force, all the pieces began to fall into place, and much of his experiences as a youth must have begun to make sense. The same could be said about Anakin and his abilities. It must have been puzzling that one so young could succeed where even adults could not. Then Qui-Gon Jinn stepped into his life, and the pieces of his amazing abilities began to take shape.

Let's not forget Han. I would imagine he found it very puzzling indeed why anyone would risk his or her life for others s/he did not know, others who, probably, didn't even care one way or the other (in Han's estimation). ". . .I ain't in this for your revolution . . . I'm in it for the money!" And don't forget how puzzling he must have found it to realize that Leia didn't know how he felt about her, that she wasn't picking up on his subtle hints. Hello Han! She did pick up on your hints. Why didn't you pick up on hers? (Men can be so blind sometimes. ) Of course, the pieces fell into place for Han in both instances. He learned that sometimes one must give oneself over to something larger than oneself. Personal gratification is not the greatest reward. And Han finally opened his eyes to see what was in front of him all along. Okay, it took Leia revealing that Luke was her brother and not his rival. Whatever works!

I could go on and on about this subject, but I think you get the idea. Life can be very puzzling indeed, whether it be real life or in the GFFA. In the end - a great deal of the time - it really does depend on one's point of view.

As I neared home, continuing to enjoy the sounds of nature and the tunes playing on my MP3 player, I caught sight of a rose-breasted robin soaring into the sky. If I could be any animal, I'd be a bird. No, wait, I'd rather be a horse. No, wait! I'd like to be a wolf! Yikes! What a combination! A bird - because of the unadultered freedom it exudes when it takes flight. A horse - because of its sheer power whether it is standing still or stretching its legs at a full gallop. A wolf - because of its devotion and loyalty to both itself and its pack. Imagine if there was one animal that embodied all three of those creatures. Oh wait - there is such an animal. Me! Think of those three animals as but pieces of the puzzle that make up your friend JMW.

It's no puzzle whatsoever what I'm leading up to - this week's Countdown To CIV Raffle. My website is giving me one monster of a headache, so I am staging this week's raffle from here. If you would like a chance at one of the mystery Star Wars-related prizes, please click on the "contact blogger" box. Type "Add My Name To The Hat", making sure you provide me with your blog name and email address. Everyone is invited to take part. The drawing will take place Thursday morning. I will contact the winners only. Remember, there is absolutely no cost to you!

Good Luck!

MTFBWY
JMW

p.s. In case you're interested, last week's winners were padmeskywalker77 and yodabud3. Congratulations!