Among our neighbors in the backyard, is a groundhog. His name is Son of Spinach (at least to us, anyway).
We don’t see him everyday, but he has a den nearby, so from time to time, he shows up in our backyard. And to say something both true and alliterative, Son of Spinach is so overly skittish. At the smallest noise, he runs away to hide, sometimes under our deck. This quality feels like an endearing, funny, sad combo.
Today, Son of Spinach was feasting himself on grass quite out-in-the-open in our backyard this morning. And when I made a slight sound to unlock our screen door, he ran for cover under the deck. I found myself wondering, how long will he stay down there? How much recoup time is necessary for the popping sound of a lock? How long will it be before he feels safe again?
Then, I thought of us – that is, we humans. We hide and recoup too. Sometimes, we need alone time or sustained opportunities for self and community care.
But other times, we just doubt ourselves.
When it comes to the second, I hope we know there’s a whole out-in-the-open living opportunity for us.
Smuggling Grace 