This last weekend my darling wife and I went on a spur of the moment trip, my inclination is to stay put and relax, hers is to explore, (it is really a strange thing because that inclination is totally opposite of our personalities, I am more daring and she likes safety. But then, being around me is far from safe, so she must have an inward desire to live on the wild side). Friday morning I asked her if she could get off work, after a trip into the office to do a few things and me attending to my gardens, we finally packed and got on the road by noon! The weekend was full of hiking the woods and trails of Natural Bridge and Buckhorn Lake State Parks, but due to the slightly wet (drizzly) weather on Saturday and Sunday we (I), who didn't want to freeze off my nether regions out in a boat, weren't able to get out and on the beautiful lake. The lake is a man made one, of which this state has many, and rather large (we are not talking acres probably easier measured in square miles), and set in the hills of Eastern Kentucky which are now very green and lush with flowers all over the ground and trees.
Our hikes along the trails were pleasant, even if hilly, with many interesting and beautiful flowers, rocks (excuse me, boulders- Milea seems to have developed a boulder fetish which is yet to be fulfilled in our yard... wondering what to get her for a birthday or Christmas? A BIG rock and I am not talking diamond would delight her...) and trees, oh yeah then there are the small brooks and the chipmunks. Our normal banter and teasing were in full bloom (when we could catch our breath enough to talk). After our hike on Saturday we went back to our more than ample "cabin" more like a medium sized 3 bedroom house with kitchen, to rest and read. When all of a sudden I awoke with such a clatter, I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter... well I sprang to my feet because Milea did one of her SCREAMS and a movement quicker than I have not seen the likes of since she had dreamed of a mouse in our bed years ago or the last time I made an honest attempt to tickle her feet (which results in not a movement to get away but rather to kill). My (now natural) instinct, to get away (due to the whole kill thing), was slowly being brought into check, due to her being six feet away and on the other couch and I was personally not responsible and in less trouble. What had aroused my heart rate was that she had found a tick crawling up her arm and her quick movement was the flinging motion to get it off her. "You did WHAT?" Was my well thought out response to her explanation. Now I was desperately searching the "wood tick camouflage" colored carpet not to be the hero, but rather not wanting the thing to find me. As I searched, I instructed her on wood tick etiquette, things like... thou shall not fling ticks upon or towards thy neighbor and other important things like hold them till you can kill the suckers and so on... Her defense was the usual "I couldn't help myself" schpeel. After not finding it we went back to reading after itching, scratching, checking ourselves over and over and over for more ticks, I at least moved to higher ground. There is nothing like having a tick (or getting a tick thrown at you) to get the mind's imagination working in full gear... here a tick, there a tick, everywhere a tick, tick. After a recovery period and further scratching and checking we went to dinner and came back to the room for further reading, which was rudely interrupted by a yelp and yet another fling and more reinforcement of etiquette instruction, as well as searching for movement in the carpet and my personal space. After a long while of searching and instruction we went back to our reading and imagining... Thankfully my mind relaxed... after remembering that my personal bug magnet was in the room and not sitting next to me! (Its true, much to her displeasure. :) )
A while later I heard a calm "Its crawling up my blanket", she had needed a blanket because I would not get near her until the bugger was captured and beheaded, (see comment on bug magnet). I gratefully got up removed it, beheaded it and praised her for her calmness and NOT FLICKING IT TOWARDS ME!
And yes it was probably the same one...(see comment on bug magnet). Now we could get back to normal life after more checking and mind imagining.
As I awoke early this morning one of my first thoughts was what if we had the same response to sin that Milea had toward that tick. The repulsion, the quick get it out of here and far from me response that holds no, not even a seconds hold on our being... Sitting here and writing this I realized that sin is a lot like a tick, it tries to attach itself to you and then live by sucking the life of God out of you and possibly infecting you with its own disease. I repeat... what if we had the same response to sin that Milea had toward that tick. The repulsion, the quick get it out of here and far from me response that holds no, not even a seconds hold on our being...
Our hikes along the trails were pleasant, even if hilly, with many interesting and beautiful flowers, rocks (excuse me, boulders- Milea seems to have developed a boulder fetish which is yet to be fulfilled in our yard... wondering what to get her for a birthday or Christmas? A BIG rock and I am not talking diamond would delight her...) and trees, oh yeah then there are the small brooks and the chipmunks. Our normal banter and teasing were in full bloom (when we could catch our breath enough to talk). After our hike on Saturday we went back to our more than ample "cabin" more like a medium sized 3 bedroom house with kitchen, to rest and read. When all of a sudden I awoke with such a clatter, I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter... well I sprang to my feet because Milea did one of her SCREAMS and a movement quicker than I have not seen the likes of since she had dreamed of a mouse in our bed years ago or the last time I made an honest attempt to tickle her feet (which results in not a movement to get away but rather to kill). My (now natural) instinct, to get away (due to the whole kill thing), was slowly being brought into check, due to her being six feet away and on the other couch and I was personally not responsible and in less trouble. What had aroused my heart rate was that she had found a tick crawling up her arm and her quick movement was the flinging motion to get it off her. "You did WHAT?" Was my well thought out response to her explanation. Now I was desperately searching the "wood tick camouflage" colored carpet not to be the hero, but rather not wanting the thing to find me. As I searched, I instructed her on wood tick etiquette, things like... thou shall not fling ticks upon or towards thy neighbor and other important things like hold them till you can kill the suckers and so on... Her defense was the usual "I couldn't help myself" schpeel. After not finding it we went back to reading after itching, scratching, checking ourselves over and over and over for more ticks, I at least moved to higher ground. There is nothing like having a tick (or getting a tick thrown at you) to get the mind's imagination working in full gear... here a tick, there a tick, everywhere a tick, tick. After a recovery period and further scratching and checking we went to dinner and came back to the room for further reading, which was rudely interrupted by a yelp and yet another fling and more reinforcement of etiquette instruction, as well as searching for movement in the carpet and my personal space. After a long while of searching and instruction we went back to our reading and imagining... Thankfully my mind relaxed... after remembering that my personal bug magnet was in the room and not sitting next to me! (Its true, much to her displeasure. :) )
A while later I heard a calm "Its crawling up my blanket", she had needed a blanket because I would not get near her until the bugger was captured and beheaded, (see comment on bug magnet). I gratefully got up removed it, beheaded it and praised her for her calmness and NOT FLICKING IT TOWARDS ME!
And yes it was probably the same one...(see comment on bug magnet). Now we could get back to normal life after more checking and mind imagining.
As I awoke early this morning one of my first thoughts was what if we had the same response to sin that Milea had toward that tick. The repulsion, the quick get it out of here and far from me response that holds no, not even a seconds hold on our being... Sitting here and writing this I realized that sin is a lot like a tick, it tries to attach itself to you and then live by sucking the life of God out of you and possibly infecting you with its own disease. I repeat... what if we had the same response to sin that Milea had toward that tick. The repulsion, the quick get it out of here and far from me response that holds no, not even a seconds hold on our being...
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