A close friend of mine, told me once that life was better in the country. That is, of course, if a person enjoys solitude and wildlife that occasionally wanders by. One evening, not too long ago, this very thing happened. A curious critter decided to do just that, wander by. Some people bless a new house with a housewarming party- not the Howard’s. We prefer to let a smelly skunk spray his ominous odor on our house.
I was sitting in the living room with Eva when we heard what sounded like a hissing cat. I jumped up and quickly ran to the front door and opened it to see what was going on. I couldn’t get it closed fast enough. The undeniable fumes of a skunk filled my eyes, nose and mouth while the smell drifted past me and settled on everything in our living room. Eva piped up and said, “Pew Yew!” “Mommy, what is that?” I am sure you are familiar with the old saying, “Curiosity killed the cat.” Well, it didn’t kill us, but it sure did Christen our dogs, front porch, living room, and, yes, yours truly! The dogs took the initial hit, but the aftermath seemed to be just as bad.
Chuck came waltzing down the hallway shortly after and asked what in the world happened! I explained that in his short absence, a scene from “The Night of the Grizzly” had just played out. He just looked at me for a minute before saying, “Next time you hear something, and you feel the need to look, please wait before you open the door.” I was pretty sure I was about to be sleeping on the couch with the odor I carried. Perfume, candles and fabric freshener were not masking the smell in the house or on me at all. Every time I sneezed; I had the unpleasurable reminder of the opened door.
The next morning it was very easy to see how the scene had all played out. All we had to do was follow the smell. The dogs must have gone to greet the passerby and were met with a very unwelcoming spray that not only landed on them but inadvertently the house and humans. I can see it now, Samson, with his patriotic personality trotting right up to introduce himself and Maximus following behind, telling him to wait until he has secured the area. The points of contact on both dogs confirmed my theory.
There is a solution that is basically vinegar and baking soda that helps remove the skunk odor. The next day, we spent a beautiful morning washing down the dogs with “Skunk Shampoo.” Eva thought she had hit the jackpot! I strapped rubber gloves on her, and she went to work. We waited several hours for the boys to dry, in hopes they would smell better. We were denied. There are some things only time can take away. A skunk smell is one of those things.
Unfortunately, we were not finished hauling loads from the storage units to the new house, so that afternoon, we had the pleasure of making a three-hour ride with the boys in the back of the SUV. We got Eva buckled into her car seat, and Chuck and I took our places in the front; windows cracked and a can of Febreze in hand. Then, off we went. We were loaded up like the Clampetts. I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself as I thought of my friend’s words. Life was still is better in the country!
A few days ago, I had just finished making breakfast, and I noticed it was pouring down rain outside. How I longed just to go sit and enjoy the rain on my front porch, but moving boxes seemed to keep appearing. We had accomplished so much in a very short time, but the list of “To Do’s” seemed to keep growing. My dad had told my mother one day, not too long ago, “It’s not the workload you will remember when your old and gray, it’s the moments you took time to stop and enjoy the rain.” I quickly called for Eva and told her to grab a blanket and come with me. We went out on the front porch and curled up in the rocking chair and just watched it rain. Samson laid under my legs, creating a nice footrest, and Maximus stood guard next to us, per usual. The skunk smell is long gone from the porch now, and only an occasional reminder whiffs up from the boys. What seemed like a catastrophe, bubble-wrapped in inconvenience, turned out to be a memory we will laugh about for years to come. Eva will not remember all the moving boxes, the U-Haul trips back and forth, or my list of “To Dos,” but she will never forget, we stopped long enough to enjoy the rain.
“You will show me the path of life. In your presence is fullness of joy; At your right hand are pleasures for evermore.” Psalms 16:11
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