The fun began last night when the first tears of the season
were shed in Uncle Jerold’s pig barn.
The pig is cute at this point – still young, little and bright
eyed…..and very curious!
Covered in the Stench that only pigs can take the pride in
owning, we led said piglet out so Hannah could get better acquainted with
him. Dad had pointed out the pile of
manure by the back door where the pens had been scraped and cautioned Hannah
not to let piglet in there.
It doesn’t take a mental heavyweight to figure out the math
on this one. Frisky Piglet + fresh pile
of slick manure = a slice of piggy heaven!
Of course, that was the one spot Piglet wanted to go to and dad kept
telling Hannah not to let him go over there, encouraging her to use her guiding
pipe to keep him out. One wrong slip in
the slime and you’re surely to get a lame pig and a good portion of baby back
ribs!
So, on his third trip to the slime and Hannah’s third lame
attempt of keeping him out – dad raised his voice! Now, depending on who you were in the barn at
the time, the definition of dad’s raised voice could be interpreted
differently. To Hannah it was out and
out YELLING deducing her to tears, and a screaming tantrum about how she
doesn’t like being yelled out and how the PIG IS A PIG – What do you expect and
so on. To dad – it was constructive
parenting and measures used to save the pigs life. To Uncle Jerold it was the sweet reminiscent
sounds of days gone by when he used to compete on the same battleground with
his daughters. To me it was the all too
familiar sounds of the beginning of 4H season.
And to the pig….well….it was just the sound of escape while he meandered
around the feet of a crying girl, a consoling dad, an encouraging uncle and an
eye rolling mama.
The ride home in the truck was equally as fun as dad explained
in great detail the fine art of being “coachable” and learning to take a raised voice now and then and how his yelling was out of concern
for the pig not because he doesn’t love her or is mad at her and how in life there will be times
that people will try to correct the things you do and they may raise their voice and
blah, blah, blah, blah,….Hannah was sobbing uncontrollably by this time, still
clinging to the fact (in her mind) that dad had yelled at her, not really
hearing any of the value of what he was saying and then bursting into a tearful rendition of “I MISSS NIC”! At this point I was thinking….Wow – grilled
cheese sounds good for dinner!
We all showered and gave kisses and I love yous before bed
time and once again – all is right in the land of dysfunction.
Of course, I am of
the firm belief that in all situations there is a lesson to be learned and this
time was no different.
Besides the obvious of don’t let the pig go in the poop lest
he gets hurt….there are lessons to be learned from our “stinky” yet short time
in the pig pen.
Lesson one – If you’re
tempted to go play in the poo (do something you shouldn’t) don’t ignore the
gentle tap on your snout trying to steer you away. 1 Corinthians 10:13 says: No
temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he
will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he
will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
Hannah was
trying, although feebly, to steer piggie away from the “sin” a.k.a.poo. God’s touch, I know, isn’t as feeble as
Hannah’s was – but sometimes when tempted – it feels feeble. We might know it’s
there – but the temptation is great and we don’t obey and keep on walking. God provides a way out!! Awesome!
Just as Joel came and showed Hannah how to really keep the pig from
going in the poo; God also gets provides a way with us. We and the pig – need to listen and heed the
push!
Lesson two – Correction should humble us not
hurt us. If Hannah could only have seen
dad’s correction as a life saving tactic for the pig at the time she wouldn’t
have had her feelings hurt. Sometimes we
get corrected harshly and it bites a little – but we have to learn to be
humbled by it – admit our mistakes, work at correcting them and not be bitter
toward the one who corrected us.
Lesson Three – great things rise up out of the
poo! Eventually, piglet will become a
big strong pig who knows Hannah and her touch and will be familiar with her
guidance. Win or lose on his county fair run – he will show Miss Hannah much
about hard work, discipline, responsibility and well, how to take a little
constructive criticism in life! All
those tough things we’ve been through in life do the same. Like this quote I
found today says:
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Who knew you could get so
much from an evening in the pig pen!
Now go have yourself a grilled cheese!
