Stirring Up A Hornet’s Nest
A few years ago, a good friend of mine invested a lot of time and energy to create a beautiful backyard, complete with a manicured lawn, flowers and a barbecue pit. Over the years, she had gathered a charming eclectic collection of outdoor furniture which she artfully arranged underneath majestic mature trees. As a finishing touch she built a sturdy privacy fence with the help of very good friends.
The enticing sweet sound of birds chirping outside her bedroom window woke her every morning and every morning at her breakfast table she would longingly gaze out the patio window at the beauty of her little oasis. Longingly, you ask? Yes, longingly.
You see, she had some unwelcome guests, in the form of hornets, move in to her backyard, making their home under the eaves troughs over her patio door. In order for her to enter the backyard from her back door, she had to pass by that nest. As the nest grew, she spent less and less time in her backyard.
She made many attempts to deal with the hornet’s nest on her own; pesticide sprays from the local home centre, folk remedies her friends suggested and even prayer. One evening, in desperation, she risked life and limb, using a broom handle in an attempt to knock down the nest. But the hornet’s reign remained and my friend lived in exile from her kingdom.
After a few weeks, her once immaculate lawn began to look rough around the edges. In order for her to cut her lawn she pushed her lawnmower around the block and down the back alley to sneak past the ever watchful hornets. The night before garbage day, she would wait until dark when the hornets would be asleep and then she would sprint across her lawn with her garbage to put it in the bins in the back alley. She abandoned the hope of entertaining invited guests in her backyard. The buzz of the hornets became as annoying as her alarm clock.
One of her dear and trusted friends heard of her plight and offered to take care of those hornets once and for all. He was knowledgeable in pest control and had successfully dealt with many hornet’s nest in the past.
Although she was afraid of stirring up the hornet’s nest, she chose to push past her fear and trust her friend. With grim satisfaction, she watched from the safety of her kitchen as the hornets were vanquished and their nest was carried away for safe disposal.
My friend chose very wisely. She could have remained in her fear, intimidated by the hornets. She could have continued to modify her lifestyle, becoming more and more a prisoner in her own home as a hornet nest grew in size and took more territory. She could have abandoned her backyard completely and began anew by working on her front yard. Instead, she admitted that she was powerless over those hornets and surrendered control to someone who she knew was an expert and someone she knew who had her best interests at heart.
Is there a situation in your life that has spun out of control? Do you feel bullied by the enemy? Have you rearranged your life so you do not have to directly confront the problem? Have you come to the place where you realize that ignoring the problem won’t solve it? Perhaps it’s time that you take that problem to the greatest expert of all. I’m sure that he has wonderful advice and a simple solution, if you have ears to listen.
© 2012 Katherine Walden