Back Off!

This morning I was sitting in my sunroom and drinking my coffee when I noticed that Ottie was back. I watched him play around in the water for some time. Since the sun was shining brightly, I decided to brave the cold air to go out and try to get some better pictures of him.


I went to sit on the pier and wait for him to come closer. The morning is one of my favorite times of the day to sit on the pier. There is usually not much wind and the water is still; perfect for reflecting the trees and sky. I sat there for a while, until I realized that Ottie was not going to come near to me. I decided to walk along the edge of the pond to get a closer look.







At first, he humored me. He swam around and studied my every move. And then it happened. That little feller growled at me. I was startled. My feelings were hurt. I took a couple of steps back. That sweet little otter, the one I had enjoyed watching, had growled at me! How dare he! I have been letting him swim in my pond! I have been letting him eat my fish! This is my territory! How dare He!






I stood there a while longer, took some more pictures, and stared back at him (just to let him know who was the boss.) I was still shocked and hurt that after all of my kindness to him, he told me to back off! Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Isn't that what I do to God sometimes? I enjoy all of his blessings and goodness in my life, and just when he wants to come closer, I say, "back off." Of course I don't growl at him (I would never do that); I just politely say, "That's close enough." Boy, did Ottie teach me a lesson today! I just had to stop to pray and ask for God's forgivness. I don't ever want him to 'back off' from my life. I want him in every part of it. I know I couldn't survive without him. I am thankful that when I draw close to him, he doesn't tell me to 'back off'; he just says, "Come closer."

"Submit yourselves, then, to God. Come near to God and he will come near to you."
James 4:7&8

Our Little Visitor

This morning when I went out to fill up the bird feeders, I saw our little visitor again. Carson named him Ottie. I say it is a he, but I really don't know his gender. But for the sake of telling the story I will call it a he. He is an otter that showed up in our pond a couple of months ago. Actually, there were two of them at first, but now I only see one. He comes and goes at will. When he is here, he plays and fishes in the pond for several days. Before you know it, he is gone again.

I grabbed my camera (I sure wish I had a better one) and headed down to the pier to sit and try to get some pictures. That little fellow is so elusive, although he is not shy at all. He would swim right up to me and as soon as I started to take the picture, he would dive under the water. I ended up with mostly shots of rippled water. He finally caught a fish and settled on the bank to eat his breakfast. John is worried about the amount of fish he is catching. I figure as long as he only occasionally visits we should be okay. I guess he has to eat, too.

I enjoyed my time on the pier, even if it was 38 degrees. I didn't even realize how cold I was until I started inside. I got a cup of coffee and headed to the sun room to warm up. When I sat down and looked out, I noticed it had started a slow drizzle again. I guess we are in for another rainy, winter day. At least I had my time outside before the rain came, thanks to Ottie and the birds.