After much searching, I've settled on the idea that you're born as a painting, a complete picture, which is then jigsawed into pieces, shuffled and scattered. The rest of your life is about rediscovering those pieces -- in people, places and moments -- and thus, your true self.
This idea permits duality and fits squarely with both: the divine benevolence, cosmic order or destiny, and the raw and rather unmystical control and agency humans have over their lives.
You could think of it as an acknowledgments section, but for a puzzle, that is, me -- a thank you to the people who raised me, challenged me, and believed in me, the experiences that broke me open and allowed me to put myself back together and the moments that reminded me who I really am.
For who I am and what I have to offer, I owe it all to these pieces.