聽I met a spermophilus in our backyard the other day; literally, 鈥渟eed eater.鈥� A thirteen-striped ground squirrel, also called a thirteen-liner, among other names. The tiny mammal scampered back and forth between a hiding spot beside three ceramic frogs and the seed-strewn area under the birdfeeder. I wandered over as she nibbled.
To my surprise, the attractive little gopher didn鈥檛 scoot away. At least not for long. After a dash to shelter among the chives she returned, sat up on her haunches almost at my feet, and began stuffing seeds into her cheek pouches. Every so often she stopped to eat one, holding it with dainty paws and cracking it open to reach the meat inside.
Since she didn鈥檛 mind my attention, I sat down on a nearby bench to watch. 鈥淭hose seeds are not for you, you know.鈥� I said. She merely twitched her tail, fixed her large black eyes on me and kept nibbling.
鈥淟ook at her, Rick,鈥� I called to the Preacher, reading nearby. 鈥淪he鈥檚 so cute. I want to keep her.鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the critter we鈥檝e been trying to catch,鈥� he said. 鈥淥r one of them. They鈥檙e making holes in everyone鈥檚 lawns.鈥�
鈥淲ell, let鈥檚 give that a rest,鈥� I said. 鈥淪he鈥檚 not hurting anything. Besides, we鈥檙e friends now. You don鈥檛 kill your friends.鈥� The Preacher groaned.
No doubt our visitor will be trapped, perhaps even in our yard. Just not when I鈥檓 around. And if I see our own humane snap trap out of its usual spot, I won鈥檛 ask why. 鈥淎sk me no questions, and I鈥檒l tell you no lies,鈥� I learned from my mother.
I emptied all the feeders into the garbage to discourage the thirteen-liner from visiting, (as well as the wee mouse I鈥檇 noticed earlier.) Except for goldfinches and hummingbirds, we won鈥檛 be feeding birds again till next winter. I almost feel sorry鈥擨 found the new customer equally beautiful and entertaining, even if she and her tribe are considered villains here on the prairie.
Something else eats seeds. Seeds of truth, seeds of uprightness, peace and hope and all things good. Sinful desire looks attractive and acts confident. It sidles up beside us in a moment of weakness, hoping we鈥檒l adopt it. But beware. Like our visitor, sin multiplies. If left unchecked, it will reproduce and consume the very terrain of our soul.
We humans were born fighting a spiritual spermophilus. It鈥檚 the contrary thing inside us all that makes us miss the mark of what we know deep inside is right and good. It鈥檚 not always something we do鈥攕ometimes it鈥檚 what we don鈥檛 do. What we think or don鈥檛 think. Say or don鈥檛 say. It鈥檚 knowing which direction to go, deliberately going the opposite way, then hating yourself for it.
There鈥檚 good news: Jesus has the power to trap that varmint. One word of genuine repentance, and he will evict it and forgive us. The best news is this: with God, souls, like lawns, can be fully restored.
