This afternoon, as Emerald and I were playing in our basement, she asked to sit atop the dryer so she could reach 6 hooks, each with a toy hanging from it. She’s played with those since she was 8 months old, and at two years still loves the idea of hooking and unhooking them from their assigned spots.

When Hello-Kitty went tumbling behind the dryer by accident, she asked if I could get her. So as grandmas often do for their grands, I determined to succeed no matter what. Tugging at the dryer, I found it moved out of its parking spot easily, and in just a minute I was standing behind it in foot-deep lint that had quite a few mysterious objects embedded in it.

Thankfully Hello-Kitty was on top, which quickly satisfied Emerald. But as she sat watching me dig for other treasures, she heard me repeatedly say, “Please, no animals…. Please, no animals.”

Up came socks, rags, dish cloths, baby toys, a small towel, a 220 electrical cord, and a pillow case I’d been missing for 3 years. Then I confidently scooped up a big wad of lint but suddenly found myself staring into the face of a stiff, plump chipmunk! My immediate jumping and squealing caused poor Emerald to say, “Are we ok? Are we ok? Are we ok?”

But we weren’t. When I finally regained composure and bent down for another handful of lint, it had a second deceased chipmunk in it! At that point we aborted the project, grabbed Hello-Kitty, and headed upstairs.

Life is full of surprises. When the good ones come (a raise at work, a beautiful day, a gift from a friend), we get happy. When the bad ones come (a critical comment, a big bill, an unexpected diagnosis), we squeal with objections.

God wants us to live on an even keel rather than to be controlled by our emotions, but we often find ourselves succumbing to tears or glee based on what’s going on around us. Scripture says our flesh and God’s Spirit are often at odds within us, so it’s up to us to choose which voice we’re going to listen to. His advice is to walk by the directives of the Spirit, which will always help us win over our unpredictable flesh. (Galatians 5:16)

Many hours later, after Emerald had departed with her Mommy, I returned to the scene of my screams and dealt with clean-up. May the incident be a regular reminder that “in quietness and in trust shall be my strength.” (Isaiah 30:15)

“A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise [person] quietly holds it back.” (Proverbs 29:11)

Praising and Praying with Mary

1. Little Anders goes home tomorrow after 3 weeks in the NICU. Pray for a safe, peaceful transition.
2. I’m so grateful to God that our time in Florida is being blessed and that I’m feeling so good!