It takes a village.....

I know the saying is that it takes a village to raise a child, but I have decided it takes a village to take care of a single girl!

I feel to really do this story justice I have to go back to Sunday. I was leading worship and the colors were teal and brown. I had decided to wear my teal shirt and Sarah’s brown skirt which she had loaned me during conference. It was fortunately still in my room. I knew there was a hole in the right armpit of the shirt so I ghetto-mended it with safety pins and headed off to the church. During our pre-worship practice time Brenda came to me and asked me to raise my left arm. While giving signals to the band she saw skin and realized I had a hole in that side of the shirt as well. I still can’t figure out how that happened since the shirt is not even remotely tight on me.

I had safety pins in my purse and could have “mended” the other hole as well, but decided the safer bet was a different shirt. Fortunately I live right across the street from the church. Unfortunately I really didn’t have time to stop practice and go get a different shirt, and Sarah was not at home. Shannon, one of our students, was sitting in the sanctuary and was more than willing to oblige my request and go to my house for another shirt. Sweet Shannon not only got the shirt I requested from the dryer, but also took my other clothes out of the dryer and laid them on the washing machine.

Fast forward to last night… I was preparing to do laundry for my trip to Baton Rouge tomorrow. I went into the laundry room to get the clean clothes that I knew were still laying on the washing machine, in need of being hung up, when I discovered next to them… a dropping. Then I saw several more droppings on the towels on top of the dryer. I picked up my clothes, gave them a little shake and more droppings fell out on the floor. At this point I knew I had a problem.

Now, it must be noted that I hate mice. I’ve had way too many mouse experiences. As a child I lived in way too many mouse invested houses, one I still refer to as “the mouse house” to this day. It was so bad that when my parents and I would get home from being out at night they would leave me sitting in the car wait while they went and checked the traps. Yuck! This is the same house that I remember a mouse running across the floor while I was watching Saturday morning cartoons.

So, last night’s discovery had me darn near paralyzed with fear. The irony being that right around 4pm yesterday afternoon I was paralyzed with the same fear when I heard scampering on the roof over my office. First thing I did was text Luke, one of the boys that lives down at the end of the street. I was in search of traps, and someone to help me set them, but he didn’t have any. He suggested David Fang did. So the next text was to David, who had traps, but didn’t know how to set them. I then texted Luke again and begged through capped letters for him to help me set the traps. He was willing.

I drove across the highway to David’s to pick up the traps. He gave me four and still had an entire arsenal in his drawer. He asked me if I was cold and I explained that I was not, I was merely scared to death! I then swung by and picked up Luke, handing him my mini mouse catching arsenal. After about twenty minutes of trap snapping and peanut butter flying Luke successfully set three traps (the fourth was big enough to catch a small cat and I decided was probably over kill) and still had all of his fingers.

Then began the waiting game…. I still had laundry to do so with shoes on I carefully traipsed back and forth in front of the empty trap. Finally around midnight I went to bed, dryer running in hopes I wouldn’t hear the snapping, and after praying a prayer that God would keep any critters, mammal or insect, out of my room I fell asleep. Granted I didn’t sleep well. I kept dreaming about mice and waking up … it was not pleasant.

This morning it took me 10 minutes to muster up the courage to go and check the traps. The first one, which I could see in plain view from the entrance of the kitchen was empty. However, the second one, strategically placed between the washing machine and the wall, could only be seen by getting closer to it. Upon my closer observation I discovered a dead mouse. SCORE! The third trap, placed behind the dryer I couldn’t muster up the courage to check. I can only hope it also contains a furry little culprit!

Okay, so single girl, alone in her trailer, at least one dead mouse… what now? Trying to spread around some of the requests for help I sent dependable Bubba a text. He willingly agreed to help adios the dead mouse, or mice, from my house. However, I then had to retrieve the clothes I put in the dryer last night, switch over another load and wash the towels that the furry varmints had desecrated. As a result I proceeded to timidly walk past the dead mouse… repeatedly… watching it every time I had to pass it.

I really don’t know what my deal was. It’s not like it was going to resurrect and come after me. Honestly I think it goes back to when I was a kid and my aunt told me if I stepped on an ant and killed it the others would come after me. So now I fear the retaliation of any living creature that dies at my “hand.” I also had this terrible image of another mouse showing up in my clean clothes that were coming out of the dryer. If anyone had seen me trying to take my clothes out they would have been thoroughly entertained!

I finally conquered the laundry and came to work. I left the door open so Bubba can go take care of the prisoner(s) when he has a moment. Just recently have my heart rate and breathing returned to some semblance of normal. I am really glad I’m going out of town tomorrow to a house that is mouse free! Let Sarah deal with the mice this weekend!

Like I said, it takes a village to take care of a single girl! This is not the first time I have had to call on the continual kindness of many of the guys around. Pastor Dan and Pete have been my own personal parking lot mechanics several times. I have added a new item to my “hubby list” since last night – Must be willing to trap and remove all sorts of critters including, but not limited to; mice, bugs, snakes, frogs, lizards, etc.

Thank you to all of the wives who loan their husbands, men who come at my beck and call and friends who tolerate me in these few and far between moments of helplessness!!