Country Mouse

Weeks before the first snowfall, we began digging out the orange lilies that grew wild alongside the cottage fence. As the shovel came down, I heard a squeak. Mistakenly believing the squeak belonged to an abandoned dog toy that was lost in the chaos of stems, the shovel came down again. The squeak that followed was louder, desperate. I jumped backward! My heart pounding in both regret and disbelief. The overturned earth partially revealed an underground nest of baby mice! I believe God is in all things, but how would I find God in this mistake?

Photo by Nick Fewings

Fumbling with the shovel, I tried to move the magnificent weaving of nesting material back into place. I did a lousy job. I couldn’t begin to accomplish what the mother mouse could do with two blind eyes.

Unintentionally, I greatly disturbed the nesting mice, and now—like a mirror—my spirit was disturbed. How important mice are to country life. They are a keystone species in forests and fields, providing food for predators of all sizes.

That night, I tossed and turned, thinking about the plunging lakeside temperatures. Would the little creatures die before they even had a chance to live? Too soon, they were exposed and vulnerable to night owls and prowling cats. I had to surrender in prayer.

Photo by Camilla Bungarrd

Surrender leads us to a deeper dependence on the Holy Spirit. We can grow in dependence on God by striving to direct all prayer, reading, mediation, and activities toward Christ in trust.

Just as Peter and his brother Andrew dropped their nets to immediately follow Christ (Mt 4:18-20), our surrender to Christ looks similar. We are all in!

I gave my worries to the Creator in trust that night, and my peace returned.

I will not rest, until I rest in you. -St. Augustine.

God desires our full dependence on Him, not to control usbut to show us the path to true joy and true peace, to help us sidestep the snares on the road, and to set us free. He reveals moments when we cause disturbances in people's lives, just as I disturbed the nesting mice, however unintentional. The Holy Spirit does this in His gentle way so we can grow in wisdom, compassion, and prayer, better reflecting His image of love in the world.

I don’t know what happened to the little mice that we disturbed. We had to pack up and leave early the next morning, and I couldn’t bear to look. However, in the days that followed the incident, I learned that lake mice choose to nest beneath the ground and near flower bulbs so they can feed on the bulbs throughout the winter months.

Photo by Nick Fewings

Even in this experience, God, in His gentleness, helped me grow in wisdom about the ways of country life, affirming He is in all things—even clumsy mistakes.

​Prayer: Lord, grant me the grace to surrender to You, in trust, when my spirit has become disturbed. Grant me the grace of peace.

Invitation for Further Prayer: Enjoy praying an excerpt from the Prayer of St. Francis, also found under "Prayer Reflections."