Christmas Eve Surprise

Many years ago....

At about 3:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve I walked through the door of my home after working for six hours.  I was tired and ready to sit down and relax a minute but my aching feet would have to wait.  My husband and children and I had been asked to provide special music for the holiday service at my parent's church.  The service was due to start at 5 p.m. giving us less than two hours to make the one hour and thirty-five minute trip.  I was hopeful that everyone would have heeded the instructions that I'd given that morning and be ready to leave.

As I entered the kitchen I found chaos.  My family was coming and going in various stages of undress.  One child was asking the other if he had seen his tie and my husband was trying to figure what to do about the missing button on my daughter's new dress.  My youngest son was hungry and making himself a sandwich.  I glanced at the clock and realized that we had no more than twenty-five minutes to pile into the van and be on our way.  I still had to clean up and change my clothes.  I had hoped to have time to fix my hair but that began to look like a hopeless dream.

My "General" mode overtook me and I started barking orders before I even greeted anyone.  In an effort to light a fire of urgency underneath my dragging family, my normally quiet voice began rising with each new order.  Do this...do that...grab this and get out the door.....

There was still the problem of the missing button so in the midst of speaking as fast as I possibly could and trying to remember what still had to be done before we could leave, I reached up and opened the door of the upper kitchen cabinet where my sewing kit was located.  I lifted my arm and reached out for the familiar handle at the top of the green rectangular box.  Much to my horror, as I brought my hand down I realized that it was filled with the soft fur of a dead mouse!

I threw that horrible, horrible thing out of my hand as fast as I could and began to realize that the very loud screaming resounding in the kitchen was coming from me!  I quickly ran to the bathroom and scrubbed my hands with soap and water.  I ran back to the kitchen screaming the whole way and began turning around and around as my family erupted with laughter.  I kept crying out and returned to the bathroom to scrub the germs off of my hands.  I didn't know how to stop the panic that threatened within me.  I hated mice but I absolutely, positively despised dead mice!!!!  Especially unexpected ones!!!

The kitchen became a very loud place as my husband and children continued to laugh hysterically at the spectacle of their usually somewhat calm wife and mother becoming totally unglued!

Finally, commonsense returned and I realized that there was no time for hysterics.  We hurried out to the van and arrived at the front door of the church as the service began.  We all looked "normal" as we calmly entered the church....But....I think it took until about noon the next day for my insides to settle down and relax.....

Years later this story still brings laughter to my husband and kids... and now also to me....

                                                                       Have a good day!   Love, Sue

P.S. Years have gone by and living in the country has given me great opportunities to conquer my fear of dead mice.  God has been faithful to give me courage!  Sometimes He allows us to face the very things that cause us great fear simply to prove to us that He is near and cares about us.  He is near to you this day.

"Cast all your cares upon Him for He cares about you."  1 Peter 5:7