Healthy Mind from the Farm

Healthy Mind

Went back the farm where I grew up this weekend.  Had a wonderful time with much excitement.  Sunday morning.  My parents' home has a false ceiling in the dining room and living room.  This ceiling has been there at least 55 years.  It has looked stylish in its time with the block pieces lowering the actual ceiling for a homey look.  However, there has been a drawback to the ceiling.  Due to living on the farm, mice tend to get into the walls of the century old home.  The mice get between the false ceiling and real ceiling, then chew holes in the block pieces.  

Sunday morning, my dad found a large hole chewed in the dining room ceiling and a mouse running all through the dining room, then kitchen.  The house was abuzz with hoops and hollers as the men chased after the scurrying mouse.  They got the mouse cornered in a hallway that led to outdoors.  My mom, daughter, older brother, and I were all scared of the mouse and didn't want to have anything to do with its capture.  We are terrified of those little creatures.  My dad, husband, and son don't think a thing about a poor little creature other than it belongs outside instead of in the house.  The best remedy was to catch it and be done with it. Then, my dad needed to patch the hole. 

Amid the chaos, the ladies screamed and shut doors to block the tiny rodent from getting into the upstairs and other rooms of the house.  My daughter and I hid until the commotion was over.  The household looked like a chaotic mess all over one little thing. 

As I thought about this, I thought of why I don't like mice.  They are tiny, but they gnaw at things that are personal.  Mice run fast and startle a person and are so small and sneaky.  They mostly come out at night and for a little pesky animal, they can cause much damage to valued possessions or main staples of the house.  Think of the pillows, blankets, food items a little thing like that can chew open. 

Just like the little rodents, we often have vices in our lives that gnaw at our emotional well-being and sneak up on us or startle us.  We don't expect to be destroyed or even tainted by the little things that chew on our lives.  We often ignore things that we assume will go away on their own, but the problems end up escalating and getting bigger just like how a mouse keeps getting into more things.  We can avoid and run from things that gnaw at us, but that doesn't solve the problem.  And, we can try to catch and eliminate certain things that are unhealthy in our lives.  When we remove the things that gnaw and chew on us, we can be assured that until another one appears, we will be okay.  

Just like the mice, it was ineffective to run and hide, scream, or ignore.  What my dad did was immediately take action to remove the little critter from our home to eliminate potential damage.  Just like our habits, words, thoughts, and behaviors.  If there is something unhealthy in your life or some small thing that hurts others or creates unhealthy relationships, the best thing to do is to take action and remove those things from your life and keep your mind and relationships healthy.  There are things in life that will sneak in and affect us, but we can quickly work to remove them from our lives.  

Live each day loving, respecting, and accepting others.  Life is a gift. Be positive and don't let small pesky things do damage to your self-esteem or the well-being of others.  Live, love, smile, laugh, and be joyful.  

Rhoda G. Penny