Watch those little foxes, I heard a friend say a long time ago. It was in reference to the little things that we allow to sneak around unchecked in our hearts & minds that later come back to bite us in the rear end when we least expect it. I thought about this recently when talking to my oldest daughter who is in the crux of teenagedom.
I run a household that consists of 4 children. You can imagine that my life is pretty hectic on a daily basis. My mom & sisters would tell you that you’d be surprised that although it is hectic, it is not chaotic. Mainly, because I try to run a tight ship. Anyhow, my daughters have natural hair. Let’s just say, although I’m happy with my decision, I am tested on humid/rainy days like today. It can be like taming a bird’s nest that has a mind of it’s own. One of the things I ask my oldest daughter to do to help our mornings move along is to tie her hair down at night with a scarf. It aids in preventing her hair from being all over the place.
I sing on the worship team at my church and had to be at church by 7AM with four kids in tow this past Sunday. She runs in my room with her hair looking like one of those troll dolls we used to play with. I asked her if she had worn her scarf overnight. She says, NO, she couldn’t find it. I normally would have let this slide, but considering I could remember the location & time I told her the night before to put it on, I couldn’t. I asked her why didn’t she look for it? She said she was tired & decided to go to bed. It was 6:30AM, and we live 40-45 minutes from church. I told her that we didn’t have time to deal with and she would have to go to church with her hair as is. She replies, “Oh well, I don’t care”.
Foxes are small dog-like animals. They hunt their living prey and are successful because they use a sneaky crouching technique that allows them to blend in with whatever terrain their prey is in. They capture their prey by pouncing forcefully and killing them. Much like little foxes, unchecked thoughts & behaviors can be like little foxes in our lives. Laziness, procrastination, white lies, cheating on tax returns, bitterness, pride, & unforgiveness can all be little foxes of negativity that, when left unchecked, can sabotage our lives, careers, & relationships.
On the way to church, I decided to talk to her. I told her that I would have let the scarf issue slide, because we all make mistakes and are guilty of forgetting to do things every once and a while. However, my biggest issue was with her response- I don’t care. 5 years is a short amount of time left with a teenager before they become an adult. I told her that it concerned me because if I didn’t check her attitude now an I don’t care teenager, turns into an I don’t care adult and there is a heavy price to pay for that mentality as an adult. I informed her that because of her careless attitude and lack of respect for others time that I would be confiscating her device. She said “But mom, I was reading a book”. My reply, “Now, I don’t care, hand it over”.
Until next time my friends, instead of those little foxes hunting you down, turn the tables and pounce on them for a change!
Comments are closed.