Monday, October 12, 2015

A Big Mess

Pocket Full of Quarters Journey 2015
Shiloh’s Shenanigans
A Big Mess


Gallop, New Mexico
By Shiloh The Shepherd’s Sheep Dog
Mommy - Cheryle M. Touchton


Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Isaiah 1:18


I just wanted to help. OK - maybe I wanted to eat the bacon grease too. After all, I smell the bacon every morning and Mommy doesn't share. But I mainly wanted to help Mommy clean up her mess and Mommy wouldn't let me.

Mommy says the bar is raised for her definition of a "Big Mess." Every morning Mommy cooks 2 pieces of bacon. She says it isn't as unhealthy as it sounds because it is organic, nitrate and sugar free, and center cut but I can tell from how good it smells that it probably isn't good for her. She has a camper sized container made just for bacon grease. Inside the container is a throw away liner. Every day, after she cooks the bacon, she pours the grease into the liner and puts the airtight lid on.

I saw it happen. The camper is small and Mommy moves fast. She opened the cabinet and slid the container out. She has to tilt it to get it under the lip of the cabinet and when she did, it slipped out of her hand. The lid fell off and bacon grease poured onto the 4 shelves, down the cabinet, and onto the bed and floor below.

"Oh no, oh no, oh no!" Mommy said as she grabbed paper towels. She tried soaking up the bed first and realized it was still dripping on the bed from the cabinet. She put paper towels on the bed and started cleaning the cabinets. Then she realized it was on the floor and she was stepping in it.

Mommy was in trouble and I wanted to help. I jumped on the bed and started licking.

"Shiloh! Get down."

No problem. There was plenty on the floor.

"Shiloh no! Get back."

Really? Where was I supposed to go? Did she think I wouldn't help? I could clean it up a lot faster with my tongue than she could with her paper towels. I started licking her feet.

"Shiloh! No! You'll get sick. Go to the front seat!"

I had grease on me and wasn't sure she really wanted me on the front seat.

That was how it went for the next hour. Mommy went through an entire roll of paper towels. She got most of it up and then used soap and water. I don't think water on the bacon grease was her best idea. She finally used the disinfecting wipes to get the last part up. For days, I've been finding tiny places to lick. Mommy has been scolding me and quickly cleaning it up.

I'm amazed at how quick Mommy is to stop me. I guess she doesn't want me sick. I know Mommy is right but she needed so much help and the bacon grease tasted good. I have to admit that my stomach hasn't been exactly right for a day or so.

I watch people as we travel and listen to what they tell Mommy. I think some people do what I tried to do when Mommy made her mess. When someone they love makes a mess, they jump right in and try to clean it up even if the other person doesn't want or need help. If people don't want or need help, when we try to help anyway, it just gets us in trouble and makes a bigger mess. People sometimes get their feelings hurt because their help isn't wanted or needed and like the grease possibly making me sick, they even get so upset, it makes them sick. As hard as it was for me to believe, my Mommy was better off without my help. I think some people have trouble believing they can't fix people's messes.

People sure can make some big messes. They tell us about their messes all the time. At first, they tried to clean it up themselves and when that didn't work, they gave up and decided to lie in the mess. What if Mommy hadn't cleaned up the bacon grease? She could have still slept in the bed and used everything in the cabinet. I would have run around the camper and tried to clean it up. We would have both been sticky and I would have been seriously sick.

Mommy tells people that no matter how big their mess is, if they call on the name of Jesus, He will clean them up from the inside out and make them as white as snow. She says that God and the Bible will then give them the wisdom they need to know what to do next.

I wish God had just cleaned up our camper and made it as white as snow but I suppose I'm glad He gave Mommy the strength she needed to stay calm and the wisdom for how to best clean it up. I'm glad that she didn't let me eat more of that bacon grease.

Mommy says you have to keep your sense of humor if you live in a camper. That's true but I still think she needs to slow down. She is always moving and sometimes moves too fast.

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