Checking in:
Hello friends. Time has ticked by quickly since my last post. The new school year began with excitement and trepidation, textbooks and lectures are being read and developed, and the leaves are beginning to fall from the trees. I hope you are well and that our time away from each other gave pause to reflect on those anniversaries and milestones that continue to make themselves known in our lives, welcomed or not.
Post:
About a week ago I had an unwanted new experience...a bat in my house. For three years, I have had a resident bat roost in my entryway so I have done some research about bats. I learned about bat houses, the good things about bats, and I have seen scary pictures online with bat feces and a lot of bats flying around attics. After researching, I decided to let the bat roost and succumb to cleaning up the daily bat droppings.
For three years the resident bat and I have not encountered each other. Sometimes I look out late at night to see if he is "hanging around." I have never seen him. Yet, every morning I do see his (or her) bat droppings on the corner of my porch.
Not sure if resident bat found his way into the house or if this was a friend or relative. Needless to say, the unspoken ground rule of entering the house was violated on a humid Tuesday night. It was the night before a big day full of meetings, teaching, and a community presentation. You know, one of those nights where you go to bed early to get a good nights sleep so you are well prepared for the events of the next day.
The dim reading lamp on the other side of the bed was on as my partner lay reading and I was fast asleep. Soon, I am awoken to a quivery, yet stern, voice stating "there is a bat in our bedroom." I, being awoken from a deep sleep, simply mumble the question, "how do you know?" It was then that I cracked opened one eye to see a child like blanket fort covering my body from head to toe, protection (I'm told) from the bat flying overhead. Not sure if I am awake or dreaming, I carefully place my fingers on the outer edge of the blankets that are covering my head to peak over the top. As I look up, I see the bat circling the ceiling fan above our heads. Not cool.
After breathing deep and letting panic flow over our bodies, a brainstorming session began in our fort. One brave soul reached outside the safety of our blanket fort to grab a cell phone to retrieve "bat information." There was a 24 hour rodent service (including bats) we could call, "but for how much?" The next search was how to remove a bat from a room. It was agreed upon that I would brave the unsafe room and close the bedroom door to keep the bat out once it left. We became increasingly worried as we read about bats biting dogs since they were baby gated in the room with us.
Gingerly peering over the covers again, I noticed the bat was not in our room. Stealth as aircraft, I get out of bed and shut the bedroom door. Now we can breath a sigh of relief. Our next dilemma was "deal with it now or in the morning?" Knowing I was to get up in 5 hours for my big day, I say "deal with it now so we can get a restful sleep." After gearing up (long sleeved clothes and hats on our heads) we begin to sweep the house (as seen on TV), and clear each room to narrow down the location of the uninvited bat.
We secure all bedrooms and bathroom upstairs. As we move into the main living area, we see the bat flying in circles trying to find a way out. While doing our quick research in our fort, we read that a dim light should be on by the open door or window for the bat to see to get out. Our plan is to move through the house to the back where we can open the sliding glass door. We maneuver through the house (while watching the bat circling overhead and dive bombing), get a dim light by the door, and get the slider unlocked and the door open. The bat doesn't see the gift of freedom we have provided and continues to fly in the same pattern throughout the living room.
Getting more tired and feeling the hot humid air filling the house from the slider being open, we decide to assert ourselves with the bat. We work our way back through the closed off rooms to the bedroom to get the blanket off the bed. The new plan is to stretch out the blanket, "be big" and walk toward the back door, pushing bat outside, with our blanket wall. After much side stepping and bending down from the bat dive bombs, we get uninvited bat out of our environment and into his welcomed outdoor space.
Life Lesson:
Sometimes we get ourselves (knowingly or unknowingly) into situations. When that happens, look for the door that opens as one usually does. We may have to work to open it ourselves or someone else could provide an out for us. When we find ourselves in these circumstances we tend to panic (overtly or covertly) and may think/act erratically as we try to figure out our new surroundings.
In an attempt to calm us both during this bat escapade I kept verbalizing, "just remember the bat is scared and we need to choose how to react to that." This mantra served as a way for me to put this elevated experience into perspective. Always remember that we have a choice about how we react to our everyday circumstances. Sure, life events will continue to happen. How we choose to respond builds character or ruins our integrity. Choose to build...
Create joy in this day,
Lisa
