You move me

Call me crazy, but these little 'number slide' puzzles have always been my favorite game. I remember getting them in goodie bags at a birthday parties when I was little and thoroughly enjoying working diligently on them to get the numbers in the right spots!
I LOVE getting everything in order.

The trick with this game is that, most of the time, you have to be OK with everything being in the wrong place at first. You have to learn to be comfortable with what isn't quite right--initially. You might have to move '6' down over to where the '10' should be so that you can move '5' up and next to '4'....or vice versa!
You have to trust your moves knowing that with good planning--and lots of patience--things are going to line up just right.

It can actually start off looking pretty hopeless--seeming nearly impossible--everything appearing confusing and not being lined up the way it should be (read: the way you want it to be.) You are encouraged (ok, forced) to think several moves ahead--things have to be done with forethought and with a plan. And you HAVE to stay focused on the ultimate goal: getting everything to line up the way you want it to.
Your movements have to be based on the big picture.

It can also be quite frustrating. You want it now! Just line up already! Sometimes, you think you just have it--or you have (a big) part of it! But then there's that one piece that is still in the wrong place. You might even think about giving up or throwing the game.
Don't.
Instead, remember the goal and take a look at it again. Realize that you have to move one piece at a time--maybe even (temporarily) giving up some of the parts you already have in place--to get that last piece to line up.
It's truly a game of logic and timing. Again, you have to have a plan.
And a whole lot of patience.
But for someone like me, the challenge--and the reward!--far outweigh the frustration.
And it's actually unbelievably rewarding to see it come out just the way you want it to.

It's so very much like life, don't you think?
Sometimes you have to intentionally hold off putting things where you want them to be. Keeping the ultimate goal in mind, you have to trust that with a little forethought, a lot of patience and a couple of really smart moves, eventually everything will line up exactly the way it's supposed to.
I'm game.