Completing the Set

“We are like shop windows in which we arrange what others have given us.” – Jean-Luc Godard

My mother loves glassware. She would also affirm that we've had a few [salty] discussions regarding my [unsolicited] opinion that she might have too many dishes. But hey, she’s not alone– a lot of people collect glassware: vintage Fenton, vintage Corelle, Depression glass, Aladdin lamps, Uranium glass– you get the idea.

Some years back, a family member gave my mom a few ‘Golden Wheat’ dishes. There were some plates, saucers, and cups, but the set was incomplete. With a little patience and a lot of searching through her various glassware goldmines, she found the pieces she needed. She even ended up with extras, which she resold to others who were looking for the same pattern.

Earlier this week, I was driving down the road when my mind plucked that set of dishes right out of thin air. I found myself thinking about the once-incomplete set, intrigued that someone was looking for a few wheat dishes, while others just happened to have some they didn’t need. Call me crazy, but I thought, “That’s pretty neat.”

More importantly, I realized that, in a sense, we’re all part of an ongoing swap meet with the world around us. I’m speaking of far more precious commodities, but it’s akin to giving out cups and bowls all over the place while actively searching for plates and saucers. I cannot help but draw a parallel to a few lines from Alfred Tennyson’s poem, Ulysses, in which he wrote:

I am a part of all that I have met;

Yet all experience is an arch wherethro' 

Gleams that untravell'd world whose margin fades 

For ever and forever when I move. 

Superimposing that idea onto my life, I recognize that countless people have given me grace, courage, strength, and love when I’ve needed those things to become a bit more complete. In doing so, they became a part of my story. And that is exactly what I hope to do for others.

Back when this happened, the minimalist in me probably said, “Mama! More glassware?” But the hands of time lifted a deeper meaning to the surface: the people, places, and events we experience help us round out our ever-widening “set” in this life.  We might not even know what we need–or lack– until we stumble upon it. Whatever the case, may you be brave and patient in the continual quest to complete your set.

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