Gratitude Journal

What a night! Bob picked Andy up about 5 pm and just as they were heading out the door the phone rang. I did not recognize the number but noticed the area code,our former area code in Illinois, so I answered. It was a girlfriend that I had lost touch with years earlier. We were next door neighbors until I was about 10 yrs old, and my family moved to Ohio. We had kept in contact for many many years. She called to let me know her mother had passed away. We had been calling her mothers house without answer and finally a “this number has been disconected” about 8 months ago. We had assumed she had passed. I was quite surprised by the call. My girlfriend had taken her mother home with her as her health failed and cared for her until she needed round the clock care, she was then moved to a nursing facility with hospice. It is hard for me to tell you how much this women influenced my life. She was a very strong intelligent woman. All of my earliest memories include Mary “Bernice” Shade. I have a statue of the virgin Mary that she gave me when I was about 5 or 6, it sits on a shelf in my living room. She was deeply loved and will be sadly missed by so many.

It was after 6 and dark when we finally got off the phone. I had to bring wood in for the night. Most of you know I am night blind and rarely go out at night unless I have Sweetie to hang on to. I had to go get the wood and feed the cats that call our woodshed home, so I got my BIG flash light, it is like a giant million candle power spot light. I grabbed a bowl of cat food and my carrier for wood and headed out, shining my super light on the woodshed. There sitting right in front of the wood I so desperatly needed was the largest possum I have ever seen. UGGGHH!…what now? I put the cat food down on the back porch and headed inside for my trusty bb gun. I use a bb gun because I only want to frighten him away, I don’t want to hurt him…well, maybe just a little…enough to not come back. I go back out with my little gun and my big light. I prop the light to shine on him, he stares back then continues to eat leftover cat lunch, I take aim and WHAM!…right in the hind end. He turns his head as if to say I think something bit me, then he goes right back to eating the cat food. I need more pumps of air in my little gun…so as I start to pump the gun he runs away, at the same time my Giant million candle power light flickers and goes out. Great, I will have to charge the light before I can get the wood and I only have 2 pieces of wood left in the house. UGH!….I let the light charge about half an hour and then go back out. HE’S BACK! I go back in for my little gun and repeat the whole entire process…shoot possum, pump gun, possum runs, light dies and here we go again back to charge the light. LOL. I miss Sweetie. This time I wait 45 minutes for the light to charge, it takes a lot of charging for a million candle power light. Just then a truck pulls up the lane, it’s my daughter, PRAISE THE LORD! I tell her about my possum problem and she says she will get the wood for me. We both go out, I hold the light she takes the wood carrier. There he is back again! Mindy looks at me and says “Geez mom, that’s the biggest possum I have ever seen”….she continues to walk toward him. He is not about to leave, he just turns his face toward her. She stops, picks up some snow and makes a snowball to throw at him. She hits him square in the back, he turns around, face to face now…as if to say “you talkin to me?” …its a stand off. Mindy makes another snowball takes aim and splat right in the face he gets it…at that he takes off. We get the wood and all is well. You can bet I will get my wood before dark tonight! I am so thankful we were able to get the wood in! Thankful that Mindy saved the day!