Thanks to Katie Bouman’s algorithms, we for the first time were able to view an image of a black hole.

According to the Washington Post, Bowman, who is a postdoctoral researcher at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, had been working on such an algorithm for almost six years before finally having her calculations pay off.

Now for me to continue on like I know the first thing about algorithms or astrophysics would be a farce.

The closest thing I have ever come to being interested in “highbrow” science is when I tune in to “The Big Bang Theory.”

And even then, if it weren’t for Penny’s character, I would be lost.

However, while I may not have the IQ of a scientist, I do understand the desire of needing a visual image, and Wednesday’s discovery reminded me of how powerful an impact they can play in our lives.

For most of my adult life, I have visualized life as if it was a puzzle, and I was content as long as the pieces fit together smoothly.

And like a puzzle, the easy parts of my life represented the flat smooth outer edges, easier to find and simpler to fit together.

And once these parameters were secure it was just a matter of continuing to fill in the blank spaces in between.

For several years, I rocked along adding a piece here and piece there, slowly but surely edging closer to life’s completed picture, or so I thought.

One day this puzzle of life fell and broke apart.

I was not only devastated; there I was holding all the individual pieces in my hands.

But as time went on I began to rally and tried hard to fit as many of the pieces back together. There were some that snapped back easily. But that was not the case for others.

And for years, I have worked like the devil trying to fit those puzzles pieces back where they belong. But for some reason I just can’t get them to fit anymore.

Even in the numerous attempts of twisting and turning and at times even forcing, the pieces just don’t fit.

To be honest, I was just about to go crazy that things weren’t working out, until a thought crossed my mind the other night.

What if my process for problem solving was wrong and my visual image of life skewed?

Maybe the pieces of life are not supposed to fit within parameters like in a puzzle.

What would happen if I started thinking differently and began to view life like a garden instead?

Yes, of course there would probably be some weeds, but if tended, they can be tamed.

A vision of life like this would look so different. There would be no more coercing, forcing or looking for missing pieces.

And instead of life existing within a puzzle’s confines, the image of a garden could offer unimaginable space and beauty.

Not to mention the glorious smell of flowers.

In an interview of the 29-year-old Bouman on MSN.com, she said her passion was “coming up with ways to see or measure things that are invisible.”

Yes, images are powerful.

Terri Cowart Frazier is a staff writer for The Vicksburg Post. You may reach her at terri.frazier@vicksburgpost.com.