My Encounter!

Chico and I were just leisurely walking around our apartment building this morning! Leisurely means Chico was taking his own good time finding a suitable place to use the bathroom!  I was just enjoying the beautiful day, looking at the flowers I had just potted the day before! Chico took me up one hill and down another! I was beginning to huff and puff by that time!
As we rounded the corner on the left side of the apartment, there was the cat who seems to  play games with Chico. She’ll wait until he gets almost nose to nose with her and then streak off so fast you can hardly see her! Then after taking a few more steps a second cat (my neighbor has been secretly feeding them) shot off  behind the other cat! Suddenly Chico stopped dead in his tracks, then started off running! I started screaming for Chico to stop,  because sitting there at a bush was a  possum! Almost BABY possum! That cat had eaten all the skin off one side of her neck. It was sitting there, weaving as if hurt bad! My neighbor stuck her head out of her window and was yelling for Chico to stop because it had its mouth open as if to tell him “come on sucker”,  but it seemed to be staring right in my eyes,  asking me to help it!  I got Chico inside, by that time tears were stinging my eyes, because of the way that little possum was looking at me!
Lillian came out, retrieved a box from her car, cut holes in it so it could breathe, but when she got back out there, that little rascal had disappeared. I said ‘Thank you Lord’.  Now I know anyone reading this would say “Heck, I would have killed it myself” but after being around my son Kevin all his life, and now Victoria, I could never have done such a thing! If I killed a spider he would say “Mama ,he’s just trying to find his way out of here”.  I  would just shake my head and walk on!
This did remind me of something that happened way back  fifty years ago! Loretta and I were double dating one Saturday night and back then you mostly just rode around or went to a Drive-in movie! Wasn’t much else to do! We came through the Battleground Park road and came upon a strange looking critter sitting in the middle of the road! We said “What in the world is that?????”  They told us it was a possum! We were so fascinated with it because we had never seen a possum! I said “Let’s take it home” to Lo and she said “o.k.” The boys got a box out of the trunk and put that possum in it and we brought it home . Mama and Daddy were already in bed so we set it down in the dining room! When mama and daddy got up and saw that possum the roof nearly lifted! Daddy said ” You girls get that possum out of here and back where you got it and I mean NOW!”  But there was one problem ,the possum had gotten out of the box and we couldn’t find it!  We finally found it behind the refrigerator and down the road we went!
That was the first and last time I have ever seen a possum until today! I will still see those little black eyes looking at me! Wonder what the Vet would have said if I had carried that possum into his office?
Reminds me of another thing My old friend Mrs. Redmond told me one day! She has since died! She said her mother used to put possums in a cage to clean them out (in other words they would make sure what they ate for a few days or so) then she would boil them and serve them with sweet potatoes! She said her mother would call and invite my Grandfather to come to eat with them! She said “Man, your Granddaddy sure did love to eat that possum”!!!! I still shiver when I even think about that!!!!!
Maybe It will be another 5o years before I run up on a Possum! By that time I will be at home with Jesus! Do you reckon they have possums in Heaven?????