Remember the monster that lived under your bed? You know, the one that you leapt bedroom-door-to-mattress to avoid having grab you around the ankles? I had one under my bed, in the gap between my bed and the wall, in the closet, in the bathtub, in the . . . well, maybe I better stop before you start to worry about 12-year-old Jeanette. Oops, did I say 12-year-old? I meant 6-year-old.
Thou shall not lie.
Okay, so I was a scardy cat into my teen years. I confess. But that’s a blog post for another time.
Yesterday I discovered a monster under my desk. When I sat down with my Bible, my journal, and my loved-to-death copy of My Utmost for His Highest I heard a strange sound coming from the floor. My body stiffened. Had another mouse slipped through the cat door? I peek under the desk, instinctively tucking my feet up. Nothing. The sound got louder. Heart racing, I peeked again, just in time to see a black paw stretch out from the under the low shelf that houses my Internet router. Before I had a chance to gasp in horror, a familiar black-and-I-think-orange face poked out.
“Meow.”
Lucia, one of our two cats, had found a new hiding place. I laughed, feeling my heart slow to a more human pace, and stroked her as she stretched and yawned her way out. I found her in the same spot this morning. This time I smiled at the first rumbly purr/meow/yawn.
“Good morning, Lucia,” I whispered, marveling at how she managed to fit her body into such a tight space. I guess my office is her new bedroom and that cozy corner under my desk her bed.
That moment of fear turned to laughter made me think of a quote by Victor Hugo.
“The peculiarity of sunrise is to make us laugh at all our terrors of the night, and our laugh is always proportioned to the fear we have had.”
How often have I withered in fright, only to discover that the “monster” was one of our cats, my husband returning late from work, or my teenager rummaging through the fridge for a midnight snack? Afterward I always feel silly. Then I laugh at myself.
Am I the only one with a monster under the desk story? I’d love to hear yours.
Have a blessed, fear-free day.
Jeanette
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